The Rebound of the Fall
by luckybear101
Summary: Ryan and Marissa reunite after almost seven years. What will become of them?
1. Prologue: Gone

Prologue: Gone

The floor was cold under her feet despite the heat outside. Marissa took no notice of it as she stood staring at the wall opposite her. She was leaving. In a few hours she would be going, going, gone. The idea of leaving this place that she had grown up in was more than she could think of at the moment. _I have to go_ she thought sighing. She shifted uncomfortably trying to push out the memories that were flooding back to her. This house had always done strange things to her. Now matter what she tried to do, she couldn't quite forget what had come to pass both there and other places. The house held way too many of her secrets. Some of them Summer didn't even know!

Marissa frowned at the wall opposite her trying not to think back to almost three years before then. Why of all the things she was to remember then, did that have to be it?

_Ryan was sitting at the bottom of the Cohens' driveway leaned up against the mailbox smoking. He didn't know why he had come all the way out here when he could have just smoked in the backyard. Mr. Cohen said no smoking in the house; he didn't say anything about the backyard._

_Ryan was just about to head back there when he noticed a figure walking toward him. He recognized her from earlier. Marissa, Mr. Cohen had called her. But why the hell was she walking home? Shouldn't that boyfriend of hers have driven her home? Even he, Ryan, would have driven her home, and he wasn't exactly known for being the perfect gentleman!_

"_What are you doing?" she asked as soon as she saw him sitting there._

"_Spanking the monkey! What the hell does it look like I'm doing!?!" he shot back not quite sure why he was being such an ass to her at the moment. "Why didn't your little boyfriend drive you home?"_

"_I felt like leaving early. Plus, it's a nice night, thought I'd walk."_

"_You don't strike me as one to go wandering around by yourself. I bet you pee in groups even!" That was something about chicks he never got, the need to go to the bathroom in groups._

_Marissa completely ignored his snide comment. "Can I bum another cigarette?" she asked plopping down beside him._

"_If you must."_

"_So, you're Ryan right? The cousin from Boston."_

"_If that's what you want me to be then sure; I'm Ryan the cousin from Boston." Ryan didn't know why he was saying these things to her. It was like he was drunk and couldn't quite focus on what was going on._

_Marissa sighed in a way that told him something quite interesting was on her mind. "Is there something you need help with?"_

"_I suppose."_

"_Your boyfriend doesn't take care of it?" Ryan asked telling her he knew what was going on in her mind._

"_Who says I was horny when I was with him?"_

_Ryan snorted with laughter not really sure if there was an answer to that statement. "Does he know?"_

"_Luke? No. We've never exactly gotten that far."_

"_Never?"_

"_I've never wanted to," she said shrugging._

"_You've never wanted to have sex?" he asked astonished. "But you have to be like my age." Things went silent for a long time._

"_But you've done other stuff with this Luke guy?" Ryan remembered asking not quite sure why he was in fact asking it. Making conversation probably. Why did he have to make conversation? You sit with someone smoking you make conversation. That's why. Those are the rules even if you have absolutely no interest in whatever the conversation is about._

"_Not really," Marissa said shrugging. "See, we're at this standstill. There are certain things I will do, but he won't do other things in return unless I'll sleep with him, and I won't do the things I would do because he's being a dick about it all!"_

_Ryan didn't know what caused him to do it, but he leaned over at that moment and kissed her. "Sorry," he said quickly looking away._

"_It's fine," she said just as shyly._

_They sat there for a long time just smoking and staring off into space not really clear as to what was going on or what they were doing. "Do you wanna like come over and hang out or something?" Marissa blurted out suddenly._

_The next thing they knew they were making out stumbling into the Coppers' dinning room. Ryan picked Marissa up setting her on the table ripping her shirt over her head exposing her breasts. She moaned at the force of it all before she attacked him again with her lips. It was like nothing she had ever experienced as he ran a hand over her breasts._

"_I want to kiss you," he said between kisses._

"_You are kissing me," she responded laughing._

_He laughed in return. "Not what I meant."_

_Marissa knew what he meant, but wasn't going to acknowledge it. She had always wanted Luke to do it, but he refused unless she slept with him first. "If you insist," she muttered before she could stop herself. Ryan was having some kind of strange affect on her she couldn't quite understand. Luke had never had this affect on her!_

_He pushed her back onto the table undoing her pants. She lifted her hips as he pulled them off and threw them to the floor. Ryan ran a finger along her swollen lips through her panties causing her to moan. "Shh," he whispered, "we'll get caught." He said it, but he had to admit that the idea made him more than a little hard. Not the actual getting caught part, but the idea that it could happen. It gave all this a sense of adventure. It made it all more than just a one night stand._

"_You don't need these anymore," he told her pulling her underwear down and throwing them behind him._

_She was there completely nude in front of him lying across her parents' wooden dinning table staring up at the ceiling almost like she was afraid of something. "You alright?" he asked her leaning his chin on her knee so he could looking into her face._

"_I'm just a little worried it'll hurt," she whispered not looking at him out of embarrassment._

"_Only the sex will hurt. And seeing as I'm completely clothed it's not happening anytime soon. We don't have to do this you know," he added._

_She looked into his eyes almost like she was sizing him up trying to see if what he said was what he really meant. He tried to tell her with his eyes, 'Yes I want to, but we don't have to.' "I want to," Marissa finally muttered a chill going down her spine as she said it. There had never been a truer statement pass from her lips._

_Ryan kissed the knee his chin had been resting on then sat down in the chair directly in front of where she lay. Parting her legs gently he ran a finger along her opening again feeling how wet she was. He made her that wet not that stupid boyfriend of hers! But he couldn't think of that then. He didn't want to think about that ever again. _

_Marissa moaned suddenly as he flicked a finger along her clit. Ryan decided it was time to get to what he was planning to do. Pushing her legs farther apart he ran his tongue along her cleanly shaven swollen lips causing her to moan again. He flicked his tongue rapidly along her clit causing warm juices to flow out of her into his mouth. She tasted so good as he licked. She was running her hands through his hair again moaning his name. "Right there!" she moaned suddenly informing him he had just hit a spot of her clit that felt particularly good._

_He ran his tongue along it again, and she squirmed beneath him. God he couldn't wait to be inside her! "Ryan!" she gasped as he began fucking her with his tongue._

_She was close he could tell as he went back to her clit rotating between flicking his tongue in and out of her and licking her clit rapidly. "Ryan! Ryan! I'm… I'm…" She grabbed a fistful of his hair as she felt the orgasm rolling over her._

_Ryan kept going until he was completely sure she was finished. He sat back and waited for her to get her bearings again._

"_Where'd you learn how to do that?" Marissa asked giggling a little at her darning._

"_I pick things up here and there," Ryan responded leaning his chin on one of her knees again. She liked that, that he looked at her when they were speaking. Here she was laying as naked as the day she was born, and he was still looking her in the eye when she spoke to him._

"_Have you now?" she asked laughing again. "Look at you Mr. Smooth Operator! So is that who you are now?" _

"_I told you, I'm whoever you want me to be."_

_She snorted at his stupid little joke. "You weren't so smooth then," she muttered blushing._

"_Or was I?" he said in this highly mystical voice like he'd done something on accident and was hinting that he might have done it on purpose. _

"_You know you sound kind of like your cousin!" Marissa said laughing._

"_My cousin?" Ryan asked confused._

"_Seth. Your Uncle Sandy and Aunt Kirsten's son."_

"_Yea, Seth!" Ryan said trying to sound like he actually knew who the hell she was talking about._

_Marissa decided it was probably best dropped. Finally sitting up she reached over and pulled Ryan's shirt over his head throwing it to the floor with his jacket and hoodie. "You know I've always wondered what it would be like to…" she trailed off in embarrassment climbing down off the table._

_She sat down on his lap kissing him again not caring that she could taste herself on his lips. It was a little strange at first, but after a moment it actually started to turn her on knowing that she could taste herself because he had pleased her. She ran her hands down his chest surprised to see that he had some fairly defined muscles. She scratched him fairly hard and felt the obvious bulge in his pants get even bigger. "Really?" she asked pulling away and raising an eyebrow while doing it again. "Oh, I think we're going to be good friends!" she added laughing a little before coming back to kissing him. It had taken everything she had to keep from scratching the fuck out of him as he was between her legs. Luke had always complained that she scratched too hard when they were fooling around._

_Marissa proceeded to grind her hips into his wanting to feel his dick against her center. She was getting wet again at an alarming rate! She wanted him to lick her until she came in his face again. That actually gave her an idea though. If she wanted him to do that to her then maybe he'd want her to do it to him. And, well, it wasn't exactly like she had ever been against it. She just had never done it before because since Luke refused to eat her out unless she slept with him. She had never been enthused about doing it for him mind you, but as she sat there contemplating wrapping her lips around Ryan's cock she felt a rush of moisture shot through her. Oh god she had to get him off with her mouth just as he had done with her! She just had too!_

_She gave Ryan a quick peck on the lips then slowly started slithering down his body undoing his pants once she was crouched in front of him. "Marissa…" he started to say as she began pulling them down._

_She tried to give him the most sensual look she could muster. It must of worked because he fell instantly into silence and lifted up off the chair so she could pull his pants and boxers down. The second she was finally faced with that which she had been searching, she had a few seconds thoughts. "I might not be any good," she told him pushing his legs apart so she could climb between them._

_Ryan didn't respond in any way shape or form until she took him in one hand stroking him gently. He jerked a little, and she was afraid that she had done something wrong until she realized her hand was kind of cold. Feeling like she might as well get all of her inexperience out on the table she leaned forward licking the head of his penis. He hissed lightly in response. "I'm sorry," she muttered looking at her hand and what was in it awkwardly._

"_No, it was…was…" he trailed off._

_Marissa immediately dived right back in taking him into her mouth a little ways, then a little more until he hit the back for her throat. Ryan hissed again at the feel. Having him in her mouth was like nothing she could have predicted! Just the thought of doing this to him had caused her to leave a wet spot on his pants but to actually do it… She was genuinely afraid she was going to cum right there on the floor with him in her mouth. "If I could be so blunt, you're lips look fucking fantastic around my cock!" Ryan said suddenly._

_Marissa looked up at him still bobbing up and down around his manhood. What he had said as well as the look in his eyes made a large amount of liquid to seep out of her onto the floor. "I should warn you that I'm really close."_

_She nodded to him the best she could without removing herself from his dick as if to tell him that she was fine with him getting off this way. "It'll take at least fifteen minutes before I'd been good for anything," he managed to get out with some difficulty._

_Marissa nodded again not caring. She was about to get off too though she couldn't understand it. How could she be getting off on getting him off!?! She wasn't so much as thinking about touching herself! "Marissa," Ryan grunted suddenly, and she was gone. She could actually hear her juices flowing to the title floor below her as he jerked a couple of times and her mouth was filled with warm liquid. She swallowed it all not caring at all. If she had been with anyone else she might have spit it out or got upset about him cumming in her mouth, but something about swallowing his cum turned her on as weird as it sounds._

_She pulled back off his cock panting heavily. "Was that alright?" she asked nervously. Now that she was done she was afraid him getting off was a technicality._

"_Alright?" he choked out in a disbelieving tone._

_That was all she needed to hear. She climbed back onto his lap sitting on his legs near his knees and went to kiss him again before she stopped herself. Before she could say anything he attacked her with him lips, and she moaned in surprise. "I thought you might not want to…" she trailed off. She was doing a lot of that tonight._

"_I won't say I particularly enjoying it, but you're willing to kiss me after. Not to mention that it is kind of mine."_

_She chuckled at his reasoning. "Now," he whispered in her ear, "what are we going to do while I recuperate?"_

_Marissa looked at him completely surprised that he wanted to do anything at all! "I thought guys always wanted to go to sleep after."_

_Ryan laughed possibly a little too loudly. "What'd I say?" Marissa asked innocently._

_Ryan leaned forward and kissed her again slowly massaging her tongue with his own causing their juices to mix together. He grabbed a hold of her hips and stood up setting her on the table. He broke the kiss only to sit beside her._

_Marissa looked at him with a worried look on her face. She was afraid they were about to too something that would hurt. Ryan leaned forward and kissed her again very softly as if he was intending to reassure her. He gently pushed her back so she'd be laying on the table again only this time he was laying beside her._

_They laid there kissing for neither of them knew how long. Ryan ran a hand up and down the inside of Marissa's thigh each time inching steadily higher. He ran a finger along the very opening of her slick folds feeling how wet she was. Liquid dripped onto the table as he made his way down her clit slowly to her opening. _

_Marissa hissed against his lips as Ryan inserted his index finger inside her and began slowly moving it around. She began bucking her hips against his hand wanting more. Ryan inserted his middle finger as well slowly moving his fingers in and out as he ran his thumb along her clit. She moaned softly as they continued to kiss. "Ryan," she said suddenly._

"_What?" he asked pulling away so he could look at her. He continued his ministrations though._

"_Have sex with me," she panted trying to keep from moaning as Ryan ran his thumb along her clit again._

"_You're sure?" he asked raising an eyebrow._

_Marissa nodded not trusting herself to opening her mouth. Ryan pulled his fingers out of her not entirely sure if she would freak out at the last minute or not. He spread her legs even further apart and climbed between them. "You're really sure?" he asked again. _

"_Yes." Marissa gave him a stern look like she was annoyed with him or something. She didn't want him to know that she had this feeling in her stomach like it had been tied in knots. "I want to fuck you; I want your cock inside me," she added hoping that her voice didn't break and give away that she was more than a little scared._

_Ryan shifted his weight onto one hand so he could use the other the guide his dick. He slowly ran his dick along her pussy causing her to buck her hips toward him. He chuckled a little to himself then inserted the very tip inside her. She moaned at the feeling then bucked her hips toward his again. "Hold still," he said pinning her hips to the table._

"_Let go," Marissa complained wanting to be able to thrust the rest of him into her. Just laying there while the tip of his dick was in her was driving her insane._

"_Just trust me for a minute. Let me do all the work for now."_

_Marissa nodded knowing he probably had a point. Once she had stopped wiggling he loosened his grip on her hips. He looked up at her a little anxious like he thought she'd changed her mind. She nodded to show everything was alright biting her lip a little apprehensive then gasped as he gave one hard thrust and was completely inside her. "Are you alright?" he asked still looking anxious._

"_I'm fine," she managed to choke out laying really still taking her lead from him._

_They just lay there for a moment with him inside her, then Ryan pulled out a little bit then pushed back in. Marissa nodded to show that it was alright, so he did it again and again and again. "Wrap your legs around my back," he said finally stopping for a moment._

_Marissa did as he said wrapping her legs around his back. Ryan speed up his thrusts a little bit causing Marissa to moan. "That feels good," she said moving her legs further up his back._

_Ryan looked at her for a moment trying to figure out what she had been trying to do then chuckled to himself again. He stopped and pulled one of her legs over his shoulder. He began thrusting into her faster than he had been before. Marissa moaned as she ran her fingernails across his back. They were grunting and panting and Marissa couldn't seem to stop moaning at the sensation of having his cock inside her. "Shit!" Ryan said stopping for a moment._

"_Is everything alright?" Marissa asked getting worried._

"_You're just really tight!" he responded starting again._

_He reached down and ran his thumb along her clit trying to get her closer to release. She scratched him as hard as she could trying not to moan loud enough to wake up her parents. "That feels really good," she whispered as Ryan continued to rub her clit while fucking her._

_Marissa could feel herself contracting around him. It kind of felt as if she was milking his cock. The more she contracted the faster he seemed to rub her, and the more she scratched him to keep from moaning. "Right there!" she moaned suddenly feeling herself hit her very peak. "I'm about to cum," she warned him._

"_I am too," he grunted back rubbing her clit again and again and he was rapidly drilling into her._

"_Damn!" she hissed digging her nails into his back as she felt waves of passion crashing over her again. It was even better than the last time!_

_Ryan grunted thrusting into her as he came in bursts. He clasped onto the table next to her panting. "That was…" he trailed off staring at the ceiling._

"_You're not joking!" Marissa responded._

_They lay there panting for a long time both recovering slowly. Finally Ryan sat up and popped his neck looking around for his clothes. They should probably get dressed before one of her parents came down. Marissa sat looked over to where he sat and saw that his back and arms were covered in long red streaks and in some place on his back even blood. "Shit!" she said, "I'm so sorry. I didn't realize I scratched you that hard."_

_Ryan looked at his back the best he could. "I didn't either," he said shrugging. "I knew you were scratching pretty hard, but I guess I'm just not good at gauging how hard."_

"_It doesn't hurt?" Marissa asked as Ryan jumped off the table and began to put his pants back on._

"_It stings a little, but I'll survive!" Ryan shrugged zipping up his pants._

"_Look, I hope you don't get offended, but it's probably best if…"_

"_We don't tell anyone? I know. So, tomorrow, am I supposed to pretend I don't know you?"_

_Marissa shot him a very confused look. "That fashion show thing. If I see you, do you want me to say hi, or pretend I don't know you?"_

"_We can talk. Luke wouldn't mind if we talk."_

_Ryan pulled his shirt over his head and muttered, "That's not what I meant." Marissa didn't seem to hear him. "Look, I'm gonna go. I'll, uh, see you later though. If you want, or not."_

"_Yea, I'll see you later," Marissa said blushing as Ryan walked out the side door. She hopped down from the table and got redressed before beginning to clean up the mess they had made._

The sudden patter of bare feet on the floor behind her announced the end of her time alone. Marissa shook her head as the noise wrenched her from her thoughts. Knowing who it was that we walking up behind her. she wasn't quite so sure she wanted to not be alone especially what had been going on in her head.

"Seth and Summer are gone," Ryan said in his deep voice running a hand along her back as he came to stand next to her. She hated when he did that.

"Are we leaving soon?" Marissa asked shifting from one foot to the other determinedly not looking at him. Ryan always found a way of making his presence known to her when he walked into a room even when he wasn't trying. Sometimes, like then, it was probably better that he didn't. But none of that matters now. She was stuck with him for the next couple of hours whether she felt comfortable with him or not.

"That's all up to you. We can leave now if you feel it necessary," he said frowning. He wasn't exactly thrilled about the situation either.

"Just let me get dressed," Marissa muttered walking away from him. They had already exchanged the whole 'I'm sorry for everything' speech. She really didn't want to go through all that again. They were both seriously thinking that him driving her to the airport was a bad idea after all.

As they speed toward the airport Marissa couldn't help but reflect on everything that had happened to her in the past three years. Some of it was good, some of it bad. She had just known as of late that she just wasn't college material anymore. _I'll be gone a year then I'll go to college_ she told herself silently. _I just need to get away. In a year, once I've cleared my head, I'll come back._

"Do you want help with your bags?" Ryan asked suddenly snapping Marissa out of her ravine.

Why was he asking her this? They were nowhere near the airport yet. "Sure," she muttered not looking at him not sure what else to say.

They exchanged all the usual we'll keep in touches, and life just won't be the same without yous the rest of the way. Marissa mostly nodded not really sure what she should say to him. _I'm still madly in love with you? I feel like I'm running away from something instead of leaving to start my life? _No, she couldn't say any of those things to him. She just couldn't. Before she knew it though, she didn't have to. Ryan parked the car toward the very back of the airport parking lot. _Oh no!_ Marissa thought not looking at him. She had come to know Ryan quite well over these past three years, and it was always obvious to her when he was up to something. _Why now?_ She wanted to scream! Y_ou've spent our entire relationship running from telling me what's going on up in that head of yours! Why change that now! _"Marissa," Ryan began looking down at the steering wheel.

"I don't think now is the time!" she responded cutting him off before he could actually say what he was thinking.

"You always used to want to know," he said snorting slightly voicing the very thing she had been thinking about. They always seemed to be in each other's heads even when the other wasn't sharing intentionally. It was weird, but they had always had this connection.

"I just think that we should wait until I come back," Marissa said reaching out for her door handle. _If I come back _she thought not sure if she would given what was going on at that moment.

Before she could remove herself from the car Ryan's lips were on hers. She moaned a little into his mouth torn between running from him, and staying right there kissing him. She closed her door without breaking the kiss making her choice in that second. This was always their problem. They could be there knowing it was wrong but unable to stop it. _I want him even if I shouldn't have him_ is all Marissa could think in that moment.

It was the house. She knew it had to have been the house. Too many secrets lived within those walls. Secrets even Seth and Summer had never known. Why had she suggested they go back to that damn house on that day of all days!?! Hadn't she already seen that going back there brought it all back to her? She sighed against Ryan's lips knowing that the damage was long past done. "I don't think..." she muttered still not breaking the kiss.

Ryan responded by kissing her more forcefully. He could read her, she knew that. He knew what it was she had really said. _I don't think we should, but of course we will. We always do don't we?_ And he seemed to respond to her in that moment, _We will_. His hands were on her, running through her hair then slowly moving down until he held one of her breasts in each hand. She moaned again not wanting him to stop. He slipped his hands up her shirt cupping her naked tits running a finger across one of her nipples gently. She squirmed a bit under his touch.

"Sorry, I forgot that you're ticklish," he said smirking in a way that told her he had most defiantly remembered she was ticklish.

"You just like doing that," Marissa muttered back pulling away from his mouth to look at him as he played with her breasts. "I'll never understand what your fascination is with that," she added.

"You seem to like it. Other than that I must say that the only interest I have with these particular parts of your body is as something to look at."

Marissa raised an eyebrow at him significantly. "That too," he added smirking again as he pinched her nipples a bit.

She inhaled deeply before attacking his lips. She wasn't much in the mood to play no matter how good it felt. Her hands wound around his back scratching him under his t-shirt. He moaned a little into her mouth as one of his hands caressed her lower stomach. No, she had not forgotten that about him. In fact she could feel a scar under her fingers from another of their escapades.

Without breaking away Marissa reached around undoing his pants as he was undoing hers. They always seemed in sync in times like these. Ryan knew that she wasn't in the mood to fool around. It was all or nothing in that moment for her!

Marissa could feel his cock harden under his boxers as she scratched his back again with the hand that was still back there. "I'm pleased to know you like that so much," Ryan said as she moaned in response to how hard he was.

Marissa moaned again as he slipped his hand into her underwear and ran a finger just inside her pussy. The next thing she knew he was climbing over to where she sat in the passenger seat leaning it down as soon as he could reach it.

It wasn't comfortable sitting as they were with Ryan on the back of the seat and Marissa sitting on the very edge. It didn't matter to either of them though. Marissa sat back on the dash as much as possible as Ryan laid back on the seat. She pulled her pants and underwear to her ankles wanting to be ready. As soon as he was a little more comfortable she climbed down pulling his pants and underwear down as she went.

She leaned down kissing him as she straddled him. She gasped slightly as she felt him direct himself inside her thrusting quite violently. Marissa bit him slightly with the pure pleasure of it all. Soon they were going full speed ahead Marissa moaning loudly, "Harder! Harder!" She could never quite get enough of him. "Oh god Ryan!"

Ryan was bleeding from where she had started to scratch him violently in pleasure. Marissa always had a thing for trying to draw his blood in bed. He could never full understand why. "I'm going to cum," he grunted as she began to contract violently around him.

Marissa woke with a start looking around the living room of her two bedroom apartment. "Who's Ryan?" her roommate Lexi asked noticing she was awake.


	2. Chapter 1: Memories

Chapter 1: Memories

Marissa didn't respond getting up off the couch and walking into the kitchen. When she returned she walked around to stand behind her roommate who was busy on the computer. "You're looking at porn?" Marissa asked raising an eyebrow.

"Well, all your moaning in your sleep was turning me on a little," Lexi responded shrugging like it was an obvious answer.

Marissa walked back to the couch ready to be done with that particular conversation. She could always remember her dreams and something told her that she had in fact been moaning in her sleep. She shook her head not wanting to know what else she might have done or said in her sleep other than moaning and saying Ryan's name. "When you're, you know... and you think about it, what do you see?" Marissa asked suddenly not looking at her roommate.

"Huh?" Lexi asked turning around in her chair.

"Sex. When you're horny and thinking about sex what do you think about?" Marissa clarified.

"Like fantasies and things like that?" Lexi frowned not sure she wanted to have this conversation.

"No. Well yes. I mean, when you," Marissa paused looking down at her hands in an embarrassed sort of way, "act on your current predicament, you think about something or someone. I more meant is there like one thing or person or is it whoever you happen to be into at the time?" She didn't look up to see Lexi's calculating expression.

"I guess whoever I happen to be crushing on at the time. Why? Do you always seem to think of this Ryan person you're always getting it on with when you sleep?"

Marissa's head shot up looking at Lexi with disbelief. How did she know that last night was not the first night she had dreamed about her and Ryan's past sexual incidents? "You talk in your sleep," Lexi explained.

Marissa gave Lexi a calculating look trying to size her up. "He's an ex. The ex in fact," she answered figuring it was no use not having the conversation at this point.

"The ex?" Lexi asked confused.

"You know, first true love, guy you lost your virginity to, that ex."

"But that Luke guy who came to see you last month, he said he was your first."

"He was in a way. He was my first boyfriend. We started dating in like fifth grade or something like that."

"Oh, one of those guys. Did your mom love him? Guys like that your mom has to love!"

"Yes!" Marissa responded laughing, "My mother was always hopeful we'd get married after college, and I'd grow up to throw fabulous parties just like her! But that isn't the point. We'd been together for years but we'd never... I just never wanted to you know? Anyway, I met Ryan and the next thing I know I'm quite willingly giving it up bare assed on my parents' dinning room table! I later faked it with Luke. Other than now you, only one other person knows this, aside from me that is."

"So you were saying..." Lexi prompted when Marissa didn't continue.

"Ryan and I were together on and off for three years. We always had quite a complicated relationship. It would be like we'd break up publicly, and we'd even start to see other people. We never stopped seeing each other though. He is one of the reasons I have never actually gone home all these years. He's really, you know, the reason, I suppose, that I left in the first place. I'm not exactly that into seeing him again. I mean I am..."

"But at the same time you want to stay away."

"Basically. He had this strange power over me in high school. I always think that I'm over him, and then I meet a new guy that I'm really into and think might be 'the one.' That is always when I know I'm not over him. Because see, I'll be thinking about what it would be like to sleep with guy A or to do it again as the case may be. I'm there in the mix thinking about it, but every time... I think, as we are prone to think about what it would be like to run my hand over the soft skin of his erect cock." Marissa stopped and smiled down at her hands.

"But..." Lexi prompted again.

"It's always Ryan's cock! I'd know it anywhere! I've stayed away for seven years because of it! And I have no intention of going home anytime soon!"

"But you're getting married," Lexi pointed out.

"That's why I don't plan on going back. I can't see him again. I was with the same guy for 5 years, and I never slept with him. I did hardly anything with him, but I knew Ryan 5 minutes and I was bare assed on my parents' dinning room table! I'm just right on the edge of being back in that same pattern I was in seven years ago."

"When was the last time you saw this guy anyway?" Lexi asked. "I mean not in your dreams."

"It was the day after we graduated from high school. He drove me to the airport. This was literally right before we met because I was coming to work for my dad. That was seven years ago. He drove me to the airport, we had sex in the front seat of his car, and then I got on the plane."

"What does that have to do with not going home though? Surely you have to introduce your mother and sister to the guy you're marrying," Lexi pointed out.

"Maybe…" Marissa admitted staring off into space thinking about something else entirely. "My sister likes Ryan though," she added more to herself.

Lexi was just on the verge of responding when there was a knock on the door. She gave Marissa a puzzled look then got up to see who it was. "Jackson," she said pulling Marissa from her thoughts. "We were just talking about the wedding."

"Oh," Jackson responded scowling as he pushed his way into the apartment. He had never exactly been a huge fan of Lexi's.

Marissa scowled herself just really wanting to deal with Jackson at the moment. She loved him, but he had been in a seriously bad mood ever since that Luke had came to visit. All would have been well if Jackson hadn't decided to come home early.

A few months before Marissa was awoken suddenly by her cell phone ringing. She had been seriously trying to take a nap, and wasn't much in the mood to talk to anyone. "Hello," she muttered into the receiver.

"Baby!" Jackson shouted on the other side of the line.

Marissa shot bolt upright. There wasn't something in her tone that sounded wrong. "Rissa, you there?"

"Yea. I'm here. I was just taking a nap, sorry."

"It's cool. Guess where I am?"

"I'm not in the mood Jackson," she muttered feeling bad because she desperately wanted to get back to sleep. She plopped back down onto her pillow closing her eyes.

"Maui!" Jackson said answering his own riddle.

Marissa wasn't aware she had sat back up until her eyes shot open. "You're here?" she managed to choke out before falling mute completely. "I was going to come and pick you up at the airport next week."

"I got done early though, so Mr. Cooper said I could come back now. Hey, do you think he'll ever let me call him Jimmy?" Jackson added. "I mean we are getting married." A strange cough that seemed a little too familiar was the response.

It took Marissa a moment to realize it wasn't her. "Who's that?' she asked with a sense of foreboding.

"Oh," Jackson responded his voice changing, "That was why I called actually. I happened to run into someone who says he knows you. Get to the airport NOW!" He hung up before Marissa could respond.

Marissa drove to pick Jackson up at the airport trying to think of why he would be so mad at her. Who would have been at the airport to see her as a surprise? The only person she could think of would be her mother, but who would Jackson be mad about that?

When Marissa walked up to him Jackson pecked her gently on the cheek while reaching for the car keys in her hand. "I think I should drive," he said grabbing them and walking toward the car.

Marissa stumbled after him interrupting his meaning. 'I think I should drive' was Jackson for _you're in big trouble, so you have to suck my dick to apologize._ She scowled as he opened the trunk and threw his bags in. She was just preparing to scramble into the car when someone called her name. She spun around to see who it was. "Luke!" she shouted when she spotted him.

"What's up girl?" he asked hugging her tightly. Jackson scowled looking at the two of them. "I didn't know you were getting married," Luke said pulling away. "Summer is going to flip when she hears!"

Marissa looked at Luke dumbfounded for a moment trying to figure out what was going on. "You know each other?" she finally managed to choke out. So this is what Jackson was so mad about.

"Oh yes, me and your ex-boyfriend Luke have been getting to know each other quite well," was all Jackson said in response not even acknowledging he had just, in a way, been introduced to someone.

"It's nice to meet you," Luke said holding out his hand. Apparently they had not gotten off on the right foot before.

After a moment Jackson took it squeezing as hard as he could as if he wanted to show this guy who had just hugged his future wife who was boss. "Marissa, why don't you give us men a chance to talk," he said pointedly not looking away from his male counterpart. "Go to the bathroom or something. You could use to put some make-up on!"

She nodded a little not quite sure what the use of arguing was. Once she was out of earshot Jackson let go of Luke's hand like he had been touching a leper and frowned deeply. "I don't appreciate you coming to see Marissa without my permission."

"I was under the impression she was a grown woman, and that I didn't need to ask your permission." Luke retorted crossing his arms across his chest and scowling at the man across from him. "I came to see her, not you."

"Well, I would appreciate it if you wouldn't do so again. I don't feel it's really proper for Marissa to be with other men unless I'm there, particularly ones she used to date."

Luke scowled even more wanting desperately to smack that smug grin off of this Jackson's face! Out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of Marissa though and got an idea. "I get it Jackson, I do," he said shrugging. "This is just a passing through type deal, and I had no idea that she was getting married. I in no way was trying to make a move on her or anything."

"Still, I would feel more comfortable…"

"Like I said," Luke interrupted, "I get where you're coming from. I will make sure to not come see her again unless I know for sure you're there to supervise."

"That's all I'm saying," Jackson said smiling in that smug way of his again. He was one of those men who wanted to win at all times.

_So it was like that _Luke thought to himself. "But, we are going to see each other from time to time right? I mean, I live in Newport again, and I'm sure you're going to be coming to town to see her mother. So, I was thinking, if you're going to be there every time I see Marissa, we'll need to get to know each other. Once a week me and a bunch of my friends get together to drink beers, b.s., stuff like that. Just let me know when you're going to be in town; you're more than welcome to come and hang out with us."

"I'd like that," Jackson said glad that he and this ex of Marissa's were on the same page.

"Don't mention it," Luke said as Marissa walked up. "Here's my number, just give me a call."

"I'll do that," Jackson said grabbing Marissa and dragging her away as she shot Luke a look saying plainly she knew what he was up to.

"Oh, and Jackson, we don't bring the little ladies."

"I wasn't planning on it!" Jackson said like this was the most obvious thing in the world. "Thanks again."

"Don't mention it," Luke said. Once Jackson had shut the door and began driving away he added instantly dropping his false kindness, "Really, don't mention it!"

"So, do I get to come?" a guy asked from behind Luke.

"Oh, hey Zach. I was wondering where you were," Luke said shrugging.

Meanwhile in the car, Marissa was scowling out the window. "I don't think you should hang out with them," she said suddenly.

"And why is that?" Jackson asked not sounding pleased that she was telling him what he should and should not do.

"You just don't know them like I do!"

"So you're saying it was a pity invite?" Jackson yelled angry she would insinuate that they wouldn't want to legitimately be friends with him just because he didn't have as much money as them.

"That's not what I meant," Marissa muttered going back to staring out the window.

There was silence for a time then Jackson cleared his throat significantly. "I'm not in the mood," Marissa said not wanting to have to fake not knowing what he meant.

"I don't remember asking if you were in the mood," Jackson countered.

Marissa chuckled. "Well, you do have a point. So, I'll tell you what, I will be more than willing to return the favor."

Jackson felt the need to argue, but decided it would be much easier to just go along with it. He would've won the fight anyway. He reached over, but Marissa swatted his hand away. "What the hell!?! You said you'd return the favor!"

"Exactly! I will return the favor. I will do to you what you do to me. So, if you want a blow job there is only one thing I will accept from you!"

"That's just sick! The fact that you would ask me to do something so depraved! I don't see why I put up with you anyway!"

Marissa scoffed. "It's okay for me to do it to you, but not for you to do it to me?"

"You're a disgusting whore, do you know that!?!" Jackson scoffed back. "Now, you will do as I fucking tell you!"

Marissa continued to stare out the window pretending not to hear what he was saying to her. "I said now Marissa!" Jackson said grabbing her by the hair and pulling her towards him.

She knew it wasn't much use to tell him to fuck off even if she wanted to, so she did as he said. She knew she needed to defy him in a much, much different way if she was ever going to win this particular war. _Sure, I'll suck your dick_ she thought.

Marissa pulled his dick out of his pants being revolted by the mere sight of it. She had thought more than once about sending him packing, but every time she decided to do it he would do something that made her want to keep him around. She was just wondering why she had ever wanted to get rid of him when he pushed her head down hard to inform her he expected her to get on with it. She flicked her tongue out running it gently along his length. Jackson let out a grunt, but Marissa wasn't paying attention to him.

Marissa felt them turn into the parking lot and pulled away. "What the fuck was that?" Jackson asked looking pissed.

"I said I'd suck your dick; I never said anything about getting you off!" she responded getting out of the car.

This was a big fight of their's that was always coming up. Marissa stomped off into the house leaving Jackson sitting in the car alone. _On second thought, _she thought to herself, _it'll be good for him to spend sometime with the guys!_

But they had never actually made it Newport. Marissa kept making excuses as to why they couldn't go. See Luke again didn't help matters much. He came over a few times, and every single time Jackson had made a big deal about it refusing to even get up to go to the bathroom until Luke left. Ever since then the pair of them had constantly been at odds. It was usually the same thing over and over again. This time Jackson had come over to drop a bombshell. "I bought us two tickets to California. We're leaving in three weeks and staying with your mother."

Meanwhile, in California Ryan was planning a trip of his own.


	3. Chapter 2: PodPerson Ryan

Chapter 2: Pod-Person Ryan

"Are you listening?" Seth asked waving his hand in front of his brother's face.

"Yea, you were saying…I'm sorry Seth, what were you saying?" Ryan asked rubbing his temples as if he had a migraine.

"Mom and Dad want to know if you're planning on coming home for Chrismukkah?" Seth said sounding a little annoyed Ryan hadn't been paying attention to him.

Chrismukkah at the Cohens' just what he bloody needed! "Why wouldn't I?" Ryan snapped.

"Good point. I think they were more inquiring about Taylor though," Seth pointed out.

Ryan snorted in an annoyed kind of way. "Speak of the devil and he doth appear!" he muttered to himself knowing the last person he wanted to see at that moment was Taylor. "I'm not planning on bring her. I see no point in bringing her to family dinners. Not that is matter much since she's still in France. Why?"

"They just didn't know whether to set a place for her or not I guess. So, why isn't she coming this year?"

Ryan ignored Seth's little dig about their relationship and decided to change the subject. "Have you told them about you and Summer yet?"

"I'm waiting until we get there," Seth responded frowning.

"Do you really think they'll be mad about it? It's not like you and Summer are still eighteen or anything. Kristen will probably lose her mind with excitement when you tell her you're getting married."

"You just want to keep them from pestering you about Taylor. That's why you changed the subject after all."

"You know Seth," Ryan said loudly, "I really need to get back to work now. It's good seeing you again! I'll catch you at home."

Seth frowned but got up and walked out of Ryan's office door. Ryan hadn't been quite the same since they had returned to Newport. "He was the one who wanted to come back," Seth muttered to herself.

"It's nice seeing you again Mr. Cohen," the receptionist called as Seth stalked by her lost in thought. He completely ignored her walking to his car and drove as fast as he could back to Ryan's house where he and Summer were staying for the time being.

Seth rolled his eyes as he always did when he pulled into the driveway of this particular house. Why Ryan insisted in living in the old model home none of them knew! "I heard you pull up," Summer said leaning up to kiss him once he walked in the front door. "How's Ryan?"

Seth grunted to show his lack of interest in the subject of his brother at the moment. Summer ignored him. "Are we getting on his nerves? I bet he wants us to get our own place already."

"No, he says the same thing he always says when the subject comes up."

"Which is?" Summer prompted.

"That he understands that we haven't managed to find our own place yet, and that it's just him in this big house anyways so stay as long as we want. I bet he'd let us live here forever if we so choose."

"And you wouldn't live with Ry if I let you?" Summer asked teasing. When Seth didn't responded she added, "If he doesn't mind us staying a little longer then what the hell is the problem?"

Seth shrugged. "You know Ryan as well as I do. Maybe even better," he added with a grim kind of grin.

"True, I do tend to pay more attention to others than you do!"

"Why did we come back here?" Seth asked leaning against the kitchen counter.

"You wanted to be nearer to your brother, and since he works for Kirsten now… Is this place so bad?" Summer asked giving him that 'I kind of like it here' look of hers.

"I didn't imagine myself growing old playing golf and chatting about the NASDAQ, no. I was planning my escape on an Etch-a-Sketch. But that isn't even the point. Ryan shouldn't have come back here. I can see it. He's like a pod-person now. He spends all his time either at the Newport Group or holed up in this damn house with Marissa's ghost! And he won't even discuss what's up with him and Taylor! I thought that things would change once he was back and seeing her all the time!"

"I'll never understand Ryan's determination to cheat on Taylor every time he turns around!" Summer muttered.

"You know why."

"I just don't understand it though," Summer admitted.

"Now I find that hard to believe," Seth said sending her an exasperated look. When she shot him a look saying plainly that she had no idea what he was talking about he continued, "I thought you of all people would have realized what the deal is with him. Or part of it at least."

"Just spit it out Cohen!" A decade they had been together, and she still called him Cohen when she was annoyed.

"Do you remember kick-off carnival our junior year?" Seth asked.

"Vaguely," Summer responded in her warning voice crossing her arms across her chest. She had a feeling that this was going somewhere she didn't want to go.

"Do you remember what you said to me after I ran out in front of Zack's car? By the way I think we should invite him to the wedding."

Summer gave him a confused look about the last part, but thought it better to continue along with his train of thought on the other part at the moment. "I guess. I was mad at you."

"Really? I thought you were slapping me because you had never been happier to see me!" Seth said sarcastically. "You asked me what I wanted, and I said you."

"So?" Summer asked completely lost. "Are you saying Ryan wants me all of the sudden?"

Seth snorted with laughter. After he has clamed down he said, "Well, you seemed to think I only wanted you when I couldn't have you. You said I had had you that first Chrismukkah in a Wonder Woman costume, and I chose Anna."

"Don't remind me…" Summer muttered. "And by the way you realize that if we invite Zach we have to invite Anna."

Seth ignored that last part. "And that I had had you three months before that point, and I left. You said that it seemed that I only wanted you when I couldn't have you. That I liked the chase and that's all."

"Again I ask so?"

"Think about it. Ryan meets a girl, things are great for as long as a few months, and then he dumps her. As soon as he has her he lets her go."

"You think he likes the chase?" Summer asked raising an eyebrow.

"I think in part. Is it really that much of a surprise? Him and Marissa always had kind of a twisted relationship. And him and Kaitlin? They've never been a couple, but they are some twisted siblings if I ever saw some! I'm just saying that it seems perfectly likely to me that that is the case."

"But it's only part of what's up with him?" Summer asked reminding Seth of something he had said earlier.

"I think he's intentionally keeping them at arms length, so he doesn't get close to them. Taylor, he's been with her for years, but he is so far away from actually loving her it's not funny! I just think that we need to try to do something before he ends up in a worse place than he is now. At least things can't get worse," Seth muttered grimly.

Summer sighed. "Why do I have a feeling that something really bad is about to happen?"

"Because knowing our luck it is! Doom always seems to come a' knockin' when things couldn't possibly get worse. If only we could just get through Chrismukkah."

Summer looked at Seth with a look of pure dread upon her face. "Shit! I totally forgot! Your parents know. They called while you were gone, and they want to have Chrismukkah here. Apparently Julie told them."

"Why would she do that?"

"I don't think she knew that we hadn't told them about the wedding yet."

Meanwhile, Ryan sat in his office completely lost in thought. "Forgot about me?" Luke asked grinning widely.

Ryan's head shot up. He gave Luke a puzzled look. _Why was he here?_ Ryan couldn't remember. Something about lunch… They were going to lunch that day. How in the world had Ryan forgotten that? "Sorry. I spaced out there for a second. I didn't get much sleep last night."

"So it has nothing to do with our common ex-girlfriend getting married?" Luke asked pointedly. He could be very like Seth at times.

"We have a common ex-girlfriend?" Ryan asked feigning ignorance.

Luke just laughed apparently thinking that the subject was better not breached. He had business to discuss, no reason to piss Ryan off unless he needed. The pair walked in silence to Ryan's car, then proceeded to ride in silence all the way to the outdoor mall. It wasn't until they were seated and the waitress had taken their orders that either of them said anything to each other.

"I'm interested in expanding the dealership," Luke said as soon as the waitress had walked away.

"And why did I have a feeling that this was business," Ryan muttered frowning slightly. It seemed those days that everything everyone wanted from him was business. Even Seth barely came around wanting to just talk. Then again, they were brothers, so any personal business could wait until after work hours if needed.

"It can wait. I just figured it was more along the lines of what you wanted to talk about. You want it dropped, consider it dropped."

"Why are you telling me about this anyway?" Ryan asked more than a little confused as to Luke's agenda.

"I was interested in trying to rent one of the places the Newport Group is developing. I would wait until you guys break ground, but there are certain things I need as far as the way it's set up. I thought this was a better time."

"Come by next Monday, and we can work something out. I would do it sooner, but I have to get on a plane tonight. Now, no more business! I always feel strange having a business lunch with someone I was friends with in high school!"

Luke laughed taking a drink of the tea the waitress had brought him. "I seem to remember we weren't always friends, and you don't seem to have a problem with having business meetings with people you don't like."

"And who would that be?" Ryan asked.

"Oliver."

Ryan choked halfway through swallowing his drink. "I forgot about that! I just didn't see the point in being a jackass just because he's one. The Newport Group has been doing business with Trask enterprises for years."

"Okay! Who are you, and what have you done with the guy who once said to me 'You know what I like about rich kids?' *bam* 'Nothing!'?"

Ryan laughed again. "I'm not fifteen anymore is what it is! And if I remember correctly you started that fight!"

"And you left me to talk to the cops!"

"I vaguely remember that too!"

The pair of them sat laughing for a moment before the waitress came back with their food. "So, where are you going?" Luke asked suddenly looking for something to say.

Ryan sat chewing for a moment then said, "Maui."

"You know Marissa lives in Maui," Luke said pointedly. "I went to see her a few months back, and she seemed alright. You can never really tell with Marissa though."

"I always could," Ryan muttered more to himself than to Luke.

"You might have been a better boyfriend than me then."

"I didn't sleep with one of her friends or her mother, so I'd probably go that way if I were you!" Ryan retorted in that new smartass way of his.

"I slept with Julie _after_ we broke up! And like you and Marissa were ever that great!"

"I never slept with her mother!"

"I've always wondered something," Luke said halfway changing the subject.

"What?" Ryan asked a little apprehensive.

"How did the two of you meet?"

Ryan snorted with laughter. "What?" Luke asked sounding a little put out.

"You were there!"

"No I wasn't!"

"Yes you were. Don't you remember, you pulled up to pick her up, and she was standing there with me and Sandy?"

"That was when you met?" Luke asked confused.

"Yea. It was my first night in Newport."

"Oh, I always got the feeling that there was more to it than that."

"I suppose to a degree there was. I was sitting in Sandy's car waiting to see if Kirsten would even let me in the house. I walked down to the bottom of the driveway to smoke a cigarette, and there she was. Like no one I'd met before. Like no one I've met since. There isn't much to tell."

"Then why did you seem upset when I asked you about her?" Luke asked.

"I thought you were going to ask me if we were having sex back then or something like that?" Ryan responded before he could stop himself.

Luke was quiet for a long time. Finally he said, "Oh I always kind of figured you had."

"Luke," Ryan started to say.

"I stopped being mad at you some time in the 10th grade. I always figured that Marissa had her reasons you know, and it wasn't like we were friends. So, to change the subject, why are you going to Maui?"

Ryan paused for a moment. "Jimmy wants to see me."

"Does Marissa know that you're coming?"

"No, I don't imagine she does."


	4. Chapter 3: Suprise Encounter

Chapter 3: Surprise Encounter

Ryan of course was quite right in his assumption that Jimmy Cooper had said nothing to his daughter about Ryan coming to town. Marissa had absolutely no idea that day as she walked down the street she would run into the very person she didn't want to see. "Marissa?" she heard someone shout behind her.

He sounded almost surprised to see her like he couldn't believe that it was actually her after all these years. Marissa spun around knowing who it was that had spotted her. "Ryan," she said half breathless.

"What are you doing here?" he responded at a loss for what to say.

"I live here," Marissa responded sounding a little confused. "What are you doing here?"

"Vacation," Ryan lied. Why was he lying. "Actually your father wanted to see me. It was strictly business. Congratulations, by the way."

Marissa shot Ryan a bewildered look. "Oh, on the engagement."

"Yea. I feel like I'm the only one in out little group that isn't headed to the alter! Seth and Summer are getting married too."

"To each other?" Marissa asked a little shocked.

Ryan laughed. "All of Newport is thoroughly shocked believe me! I think people were expecting Summer to come to her senses by now."

"I just can't believe her and Seth are engaged."

"You should have been here the first time," Ryan responded chuckling slightly.

_Since when did Ryan chuckle _Marissa thought to herself. Then something he said struck her. "What do you mean the first time?"

Ryan chuckled again. "Around New Years the year we graduated Summer thought she might be pregnant, so Seth goes and proposes before they look at the test. He was trying to be a man with one giant conceptional flaw!"

"And she wasn't pregnant," Marissa guessed.

"Naturally."

"At least they didn't need to have a shotgun wedding," Marissa pointed out joking.

"Yep. Just Seth, Summer, and their nice normal wedding. Well, both of them wanted to get married, they even wanted to marry each other, but they wanted to wait until they were older. So, all it would take was for one to say they wanted to wait then the other one would happily agree, and they would no longer be engaged."

"Except it is Seth and Summer."

Ryan paused dumbfounded. "What'd I say?' Marissa asked afraid she'd said something to offend him.

"Nothing. It's just…never mind. As I was saying, Seth was too chicken to call it off, not to mention that he didn't want to spend the rest of his life living down the fact that he left her at the alter, so he decided that he would give Summer no choice but to tell him how she felt."

"He smoked her out," Marissa guessed again.

"Yep. He bought her a cookbook, signed her up for cooking classes, and informed her that he expected a hot, home cooked meal on his table everyday by five. Oh, and she was converting to Judaism, yes?"

Marissa was laughing harder then she had laughed in a long time. "Summer of course countered," she managed to choke out.

"Pretty much. They ended up playing this bizarre kind of wedding chicken! It ended when Seth flew to Seattle and actually asked Dr. Roberts for Summer's hand in marriage."

"He didn't?"

"He did. It was quite funny to watch to be truthful. I was a little surprised Seth came home alive. Summer is Dr. Roberts' only daughter."

"I know what you mean. Is there anything else I missed?" Marissa asked still laughing.

"Tons of stuff. Maybe I could tell you about it all. We could have lunch or something. I mean, if you're free."

"Sure," Marissa said before she could stop herself. She stood there in complete and utter shock as Ryan stood there looking at her. "Oh, do you have anything in particular in mind?"

"Not really. What's good around here?" Ryan asked as they started walking down the street together.

"There's a dinner up the road. There food is…" Marissa trailed off.

"I ate there for breakfast. It's right by my hotel, so I met your father there earlier."

Marissa nodded not sure what she should say. I can't think of anywhere else, sorry. You're probably itching to get back home though."

"My flight doesn't leave until the morning. So how are you?" Ryan said suddenly looking her up and down. "You look good."

Marissa stopped dead in her tracks. "And what does that mean?"

"Nothing. I was just telling you that you look like you're doing well that's all."

Marissa relaxed a little. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you," she muttered blushing a bit.

Ryan couldn't exactly say that he didn't understand why she had snapped at him. It wasn't as if what she had took to be his meaning wasn't his actual meaning. They had always known each other so well which was why Ryan needed to stop thinking about her as they stood there facing each other on the street. They were adults, and they could act like adults. It was imperative that he go on with his life not spend all his time obsessing about Marissa Cooper. "You're not sixteen anymore," he muttered to himself shaking his head in hope of clearing it of all thoughts of her. That fact that she was standing in front of him was not helping matters. Instead of stopping his thoughts all that came to his mind was the pair of them as teenagers. He smiled at her trying to think of something that was perfectly neutral like weather.

It was a completely lost cause though. Thinking back even briefly to when he met Marissa had brought back all sorts of things he didn't feel the need to think about at that moment. He never should have answered Luke when he asked about how the two of them met. _I'm haunted _Ryan thought to himself as he stared at the girl who had been his first love thinking about possibly the one thing that had stayed a secret in all those years. After a decade of friendship things tend to come out particularly when your brother is Seth Cohen whose ability to keep his mouth shut lasts about five seconds sometimes! Seth didn't know this secret though. Ryan knew. Marissa knew. Marissa's roommate in Hawaii knew, but Ryan didn't know that. Luke thought to a degree he knew but didn't. And that was it. No one else had been told. No one else would be.

Ryan rubbed his temples trying to search his mind for anything to distract him from what was going through his head. The night they met. "So…" he began as Marissa looked at him a little uncomfortably. She had a feeling where his mind was going, but her mind was going there too.

Ryan shook his head again trying to stop thinking about it. He was getting to the part he shouldn't remember anymore. When you haven't been with someone for almost seven years, when you're seeing them for the first time in almost seven years, you don't remember the sex you had ten years ago! You just don't. You forgot about that stuff! Ryan forgot the others. Hell, he forgot sex with Taylor even!

Why then, in that moment, could he remember leaning over and kissing Marissa as they sat at the bottom of the driveway that night? Why could he remember her running her fingers through his hair? Why could he remember running his hands up her thighs as she sat on her parents' dinning room table? She had insisted that they have sex on the dinning room table! That should have been a sign to him that she was just two clicks away from wanting to do it in the back of a movie theater, which she did!

These are all things that Ryan needed to forget. He needed to forget all about her round little breasts pressed against his chest as he kissed her passionately. He had found it a little odd the first time he had pulled off her shirt to see she wasn't wearing a bra. He would have guessed that she was one of those girls that was anal about that, always wearing one. Moreover, did he need to forget all about the feel of her inner thighs. They were always so silky and smooth as he ran his hands up them. "Are you alright?" Marissa asked raising an eyebrow at Ryan trying to figure out what was going on.

Ryan didn't answer though, he just leaned over and kissed her. Why he did it even he didn't know. _She getting married _he said to himself. But that didn't stop him from kissing her in the middle of the sidewalk, and it didn't stop her from kissing him back. They went from standing there kissing on the sidewalk to practically dashing to Ryan's hotel room neither of them stopping to think if it was right or wrong.

Ryan pushed Marissa up against the wall kissing her forcefully. It had been so long since either of them had found themselves in a position like this that neither of them thought twice about what was going on. "I missed you," Marissa moaned against his lips as he began unbuttoning her shirt.

Ryan cast both their shirts aside before going back to kissing her again. He was afraid that she was going to get cold feet. He ran his hands along her outer thighs up under her skirt. Marissa didn't stop him. It had been so long since she had had any kind of sexual pleasure she wasn't even thinking of him in that moment.

Ryan reached around her back with one of his hands and unhooked her bra letting it fall to the floor as quickly as possible. He needed her then in that moment. Running a hand over one of her breasts Ryan deepened the kiss pushing Marissa even harder against the wall.

Marissa seemed to be waking up as Ryan continued to play with one of her tits. It was like she had been in this deep sleep for all these years and most certainly the years with Jackson, but now she was coming to. As he stood there pleasuring her even in one of the simplest ways, Marissa was driven my this desire she had had the very first time they had had sex. She wanted more than anything to pleasure him too. As Ryan pinched her nipple she moaned loudly into his mouth running her nails down his back. He grunted in response. Marissa had forgotten that he liked that.

She ran her nails down his back again and again and again, and each time she did Ryan would pushed himself further against her. She could feel his very prominent erection pressed against her.

Marissa reached down and began undoing his pants wanting to run her hands along his dick for the first time in seven years. She pushed his pants down to his ankles as she felt his right hand creep back up her skirt. Ryan hooked his finger into the side of her panties and pulled them down. Marissa stepped out of them kicking them to the side.

Ryan gripped her upper thigh hard as she ran her nails down his chest and stomach. They were kissing fiercely barely coming up for air. Marissa wrapped one of her legs around Ryan's waist as he reached between them diving into her pussy. He ran his finger down her clit and she moaned loudly. "You're really wet," he said barely breaking their kiss.

Marissa didn't respond except to pull Ryan's boxers down to join his pants at the floor. She looked him in the eyes as she ran her hand up and down his shaft almost forgetting how much she used to like to do this with him in high school. "Marissa," he said suddenly.

She didn't let him finish his sentence. She leaned over and kissed him passionately rubbing herself along his cock the most she could. Ryan's will was giving way. The little part of him that had realized that they'd probably regret this was very rapidly disappearing again. He had to have her right then and there!

Ryan grabbed Marissa's other legs and slung it around his waist holding her up by her ass. Very slowly he guided her onto his cock pressing her into the wall. Marissa pulled away from his mouth moaning loudly at the feel of him inside her. He began thrusting deep inside her grunting as she moaned for more.

Marissa grabbed a chunk of his hair as she felt herself contracting around him. "Harder," she moaned as Ryan lifted one of her legs and put it on his shoulder. "Oh god Ryan!" She moaned he ran his finger along her clit.

She could tell that he was getting close as she started thrusting into her faster as he ran his thumb up and down her clit. "Right there!" she panted feeling herself milking his cock. "Oh shit baby!" She collapsed against him as Ryan grunted and trusted into her one last time. "That was…" Marissa began but she never finished the thought.


	5. Chapter 4: The Haunting

**A/N: Sorry for the author's note. I just wanted to say sorry that this is a short chapter. Um, it was short to begin with for those of you who remember, but I took a lot out of it at various points. The next chapter will be a lot longer.**

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Chapter 4: The Haunting

Tap. Tap. Tap. The keys of the keyboard clanked as Ryan typed rapidly not even paying attention to what he was writing in his e-mail to his adopted mother. He stopped typing to read through what he had written: _We break ground on the new development in four days. We're not expecting to have any problems, but I will let you know if anything else comes up. Why the hell did we do that? Just when I was starting to think that I'd be fine if I saw her again! Stupid! Stupid! Of all the moronic things we could have done…_ Ryan snorted erasing everything he'd unconsciously written about Marissa and added, _I'll see you in a few weeks._ He hit send then leaned back in his chair all sorts of thoughts running through his head.

It had been exactly four days since Ryan had run into Marissa on a street in Maui. _She's getting married_ he thought to himself running through his head what Luke had said when Ryan mentioned he had run into Marissa while he was in Hawaii. "Snap out of it!" he muttered to himself suddenly.

Ryan got up and paced around his office trying to think of anything in the world other than the thoughts that were going through his head. No matter what he did though, he couldn't get his mind off of the two of them alone together in that hotel room. He couldn't stop thinking about touching her, pleasing her. Everyone was convinced that Ryan was haunted, and until that moment he had never believed them. In that moment though, he had to admit that yes, he was haunted by their past. And idiotically he had ensured that he would be haunted by their present as well. He couldn't forget it, any of it. For so many years he had wanted so desperately to forget all about her, but he just couldn't. All he could think about in that moment was the two of them together again after all those years.

Ryan shook his head again looking around his office as he plopped back down into his chair. By this point he realized that he was not going to be able to get her out of his head just by trying not to think about it. Plus, he had an equally annoying problem, at least annoying at the moment, to deal with. He could almost hear her moaning as he thought of running his hands up and down her thighs. He reached down to adjust his now painfully hard cock as it strained against his pants. He looked down had the pile of folders on his desk just waiting to be gone through. He need to hire a contractor for the Fisher's new house, but no matter how hard he tried he just could focus. With a sigh he propped his feet on his desk as he often did when he knew no one would come in and see. It wasn't very professional to put your feet up on your desk. That was something that was just kind of given. He just sat there for a long time completely lost in thought.

Something told Ryan that there was only one way that he was going to get any work done, but it was only one in the afternoon. He couldn't exactly go home to deal with the problem, and he sure as hell wasn't going to do it in the bathroom. His office didn't have windows though, and he didn't have any meetings for that afternoon. He could lock the door and tell his secretary to hold his calls. Yes, he would just have to do that. There was no other way. He had to get something done today. So he got up, poked his head out of his door, told the woman who answered his phone that he was in the middle of something important and not to disturb him for the next hour, and then locked his office door.

Ryan plopped back down in his office chair closing his eyes in frustration as he propped his feet up on his desk again. He remembered standing there looking at Marissa with no idea what to say. There was a part of him that kept telling himself that she was married, but he couldn't seem to register it. If he hadn't have known any better he would have thought that it was exactly like the first time when he kept trying to tell himself she had a boyfriend, but couldn't seem to accept it. He remembered grunting and moaning, and somehow ending up on the bed. He remembered tracing the outline of her spine as they lay there talking. He remembered feeling like they never had to go. He remembered everything about her as if it was happening right then!

Ryan opened his eyes with a sigh. He wished that it would stop. Even if he wanted to remember all that stuff, he didn't want to remember them laying there in each others arms like they used to. He didn't want to remember that because of what it had meant between them. It was too personal, and you don't think about those things when you've been broken up after all those years. Even if you are stupid enough to end up in bed together, you don't spend your time thinking of what it was like just being together.

He shook his head still playing it all in his mind. Ryan groaned a little as he traced his hand over the place on his shoulder where she'd bit him, which still hurt. Without even realizing it he had pulled his dick from his pants and was stroking himself as he remembered the water beating down on his back as he ran his hands down Marissa's thighs pulling her back towards him for another round.

_Marissa was moaning with her face pressed against the far wall of the hotel shower as Ryan ran his fingers through her folds massaging her clit. Ryan spun her around lifting her up against the shower wall so he could dive down among her folds. She was screaming running her fingers down his back, pulling his hair. She couldn't take it, having him down there pleasuring her._

Ryan grunted as he came violently remembering her cumming all over his face. She had tasted so good as he licked up all of her juices her clit still throbbing. He leaned his head back thinking… _Oh shit! She can never come back!_

Marissa, meanwhile, was thinking almost the exact same thing as she packed to come back to Newport after all those years. After all, she couldn't exactly tell Jackson why it was such a bad idea for her to go back to her hometown.


	6. Chapter 5: The Homecoming

Chapter 5: The Homecoming

The model home stood tall above all the other houses in the area, or so it seemed to Marissa as she stood on the porch. It had been 7 years, 7 months, and 13 days since she had last stood on the property of this house, and she wasn't quite sure just how thrilled she was to be back there.

Exactly 1 of those 13 days Marissa had been back in Newport, and it was her luck that on the very day she arrived she ran into Taylor Townsend. Marissa had had an idea from a sideways comment Ryan had made during their… well she was refusing to name it feeling that if she didn't name it, it hadn't happened, that Ryan and Taylor were an item. Why the two of them were together Marissa couldn't figure, but she was sure that if Taylor knew that she was back in town Ryan would know soon enough. It was this that had drawn her to his front doorstep that very afternoon.

She reached out and rang the doorbell before her nerve failed her. "Who's there?" came the response.

Marissa stood frozen with fear. There was something about that voice that sounded familiar. The door was wrenched open before she had much time to think. There standing in the doorway of the house Taylor had said was Ryan's stood Summer Roberts. The face of the young woman who had been Marissa's best friend since the first grade went from shocked to down right livid in approximately 5 seconds. _Oh no, rage blackouts _was all that Marissa could think. "Well, you know how you said that things can't get worse?" Summer shouted suddenly looking to someone who was out of Marissa's range of vision. "Well, apparently Marissa really is home!"

Marissa stood dumbfounded as the sound of hurrying feet from behind Summer announced the arrival of a third member to their party. Marissa just knew who it would be, and sure enough mere moments later she found herself face to face with Seth Cohen. "You found the house alright?" he asked with a scowl on his face.

Apparently Taylor had not only lead Marissa to the wrong house, but she had forewarned the inhabitants that Marissa was coming. "I've been here before," She responded without thinking. After a hurried moment she added, "It's nice to see you Seth. Summer."

"Marissa," Seth said coldly suddenly pushing past her.

"Where are you going?" Summer shouted after him.

"I need to go into the office. I forgot my sketch book last night," Seth yelled back before practically throwing himself into his car and driving away.

"Sorry about that. Why don't you come in?" Summer asked frowning after her soon to be husband.

The two women walked into the living room. Marissa picked up a book that was lying on the couch and held it up. "Seth's sketch pad?"

"Yea. Like I said, sorry about that. Can I get you something to drink?"

"I'm fine. Thanks." Marissa sat down on the black leather couch looking around the room. "Looks like you hired a bachelor to design your living room." She sniggered as she looked down at the surfboard coffee table. "Or Mr. Cohen."

"Seth and I only live here temporarily. We're looking for our own place. We'll probably live here until after the wedding though." Summer shifted uncomfortably.

Marissa's head shot up at the word. "You and Seth are getting married? Oh, yea, Ryan mentioned something about that. Congratulations."

"You've seen Ryan?" Summer asked trying to keep her voice level.

"Yea, when he came to see my dad a little over a week ago." Marissa looked around again trying to think of something to change the subject too. She could tell that Ryan had obviously not told Summer that he had seen her. "So, when's the wedding?" she asked finally landing on something to talk about.

"This coming summer. You're actually in time for our engagement party. You're more than welcome to come. It's on Christmas Eve. Sandy and Kirsten are flying in already, so Seth and I thought we'd have a Chrismukkah engagement party. When's your wedding?" Summer asked politely pointing to Marissa's engagement ring.

"We actually haven't set a date. Jackson works a lot. Plus he wanted to meet my mother. I'm not really sure why."

The pair of them sat staring at each other in silence. Summer sighed wondering what she could talk to Marissa about. They had been out of contact for so long she didn't know what Marissa was into these days. "Are you still working for your dad?"

"Yea, I run things everyday. I don't actually go out on the boats anymore. Jackson really doesn't like for me to be away. Where do you work?" Marissa was just as much at a loss for what to talk to Summer about as well.

"GEORGE."

"George? You work for some guy named George? That's specific."

"No, I work at GEORGE. It stands for the Global Environmental Organization Regarding Greenhouse Emissions. I got a job there after I got kicked out of Brown for liberating some bunnies from a testing lab. It's a long story. And Seth works at Atomic Comics. Thus the 'I have to go back to the office to get my sketch pad' rouse. He's the head of the art department."

"Atomic Comics?" Marissa asked confused. Why did that sound so familiar?

"Oh, I forgot you left when you did. _He_ started Atomic Comics not long after you left." Summer paused. She wasn't sure if she should go on or not. She was pretty sure that Ryan was not one of the approved topics for them to talk about. "It's basically just a master company for all these comic book companies he owns. I don't know why he doesn't sell it since he works at the Newport Group now."

If Marissa had been drinking something she had no doubt it would currently reside on the other side of the room. "Ryan works at the _Newport Group_? As in the Newport Group!?!"

"Yea. For about a year now. He seems to actually like what he does for a living believe it or not. You wouldn't think he'd be into wearing a suit to work everyday, but there you go. Seth and I aren't so thrilled about Kirsten giving him a job though because it's been the beginning of pod-person Ryan. That and the last thing Ry needs is another outlet to break the law. You saw what happened to even Sandy when he was working there! And you know Ryan, he's pretty comfortable with morally grey!"

Marissa nodded her agreement as what Summer said started to sink in. "Excuse me, Pod-Person Ryan?"

"That's what we call him. See, Seth and I think there's something along the lines of invasion of the body snatchers going on up at Berkeley. He came back really weird. He learned to surf! Sandy had been trying to get those boys in the water for years, and they always said no. There's been other weird stuff along those lines. Then Kirsten offered him her old job, and to our surprise he took. Then he bought this house. We've called him Pod-Person Ryan ever since."

"That doesn't seem that odd for Ryan. So he went to school and got a job he likes."

"You don't understand. Ryan is in many ways the same guy he was in high school but a little more. He's a womanizer," Summer explained when Marissa gave her a weird look. "See, his recent standards seem to be female and breathing. Which actually began before he left for school. But there are other things that are not Ryan at all!"

"Name one," Marissa said skeptically.

"The other day he was nice to Oliver Trask!"

Marissa sat dumbfounded not quite sure what to say in response to that. "So invasion of the body snatchers huh?"

"Invasion of the body snatchers! He doesn't hit people anymore. He doesn't even threaten to hit people anymore! He's all mellow and hyper-articulate! And he's dating Taylor! Well, that was several Ryans actually to our complete dismay."

"There've been more?" Marissa asked astonished.

"Oh yea! It's kind of like Barbie. You know, Career Barbie, Doctor Barbie, etc."

"Just with Ryan," Marissa offered.

"Yea. It just depends what's going on in his life at the time. My personal favorite was Cage-Fighting Ryan even though he had a bit of an attitude back then! And was drunk… a lot. "

"Cage fighting?" Marissa asked trying not to laugh.

"Oh yea, after you left he deferred college, left the Cohens', was living and working in a bar, and started shirtless cage fighting on his nights off. No that Ryan was very Ryan. At least he hit people back then! Now he plays golf!"

"And what is up with him dating Taylor?" Marissa asked hoping Summer didn't realize that she was a little upset to hear he was with someone else. She had figured by something he had said when they saw each other last, but she was hoping she had misunderstood.

"Well, when Cage-Fighting Ryan was retired, he came back to the Cohens and we had Bartender Ryan. He was pretty cool too, but he helped Taylor out of a jam. And you know Taylor; she falls in love with any man who shows her the slightest kindness. Well, Ryan was lonely and they started dating. Things were good with them for a few months then after Taylor's birthday they broke up. Something I can't say I was unhappy about. She runs off the France. The Cohens move to Berkeley around the time Taylor comes home and her and Ryan get back together. But things were never the same again. Taylor was going to school in France, and Ryan was in Berkeley. At first we thought it was the distance thing, but Ryan was seeing other people the entire time he was in college. When we moved back here we thought things between the two of them would get better because she lives here most of the time."

"Did they?" Marissa asked not sure she wanted to know.

"No. In fact things between them are worse than ever! It seems she gets on Ryan's nerves. We don't know why he keeps her around. I think he was only able to stand her through his college years because she was 6000 miles away!"

"But, if their not good together, why do they stay together?" Marissa asked shifting in her seat. Maybe this wasn't the best conversation to be having.

"Um, Pod-Person Ryan is passive aggressive. He's also kind of a smartass."

"So you're telling me that I left, and Ryan turned into Seth!" Marissa sat there staring at Summer opened mouth.

"He has," Summer responded almost like it had just then occurred to her.

They sat there in silence for a long time neither of them able to think of anything to say. Finally Marissa said, "So, I hear you and Seth almost got married."

Summer shot Marissa a puzzled look then it occurred to her what Marissa meant. "Oh," she said kind of chuckling, "Taylor told you about that?"

"No, Ryan actually," Marissa responded feeling she might as well answer truthfully.

"When he came to see your dad?"

"Yea. We ran into each other after their little meeting."

"How was that?" Summer asked sensing there was something Marissa wasn't saying.

"It was fine," Marissa responded feeling like she was being interrogated. "You know, look at the time. I promised my mom I'd help cook dinner. She's wanting to have a mother daughter night tonight. Kaitlin is coming in tonight, and Jackson is going out with Luke to some bar."

"I'll see you then I guess," Summer said smiling grimly. _Thought you were supposed to be gone for a year and made it seven instead, so maybe not._

"Yea, I'll see you," Marissa said hugging her friend goodbye and walking with her toward the front door.

"I hope you have fun with your mom. I might pop in later if that's alright though. Seth is going out tonight too. Apparently all the guys are itching to meeting this fiancé of yours."

"All the guys?" Marissa asked spinning around with one hand still on the door.

"Yes why?" Summer asked puzzled.

"No, reason. Maybe I'll see you later," Marissa said frowning to herself as she walked back out to her car. She knew it was a bad idea for Jackson to hang out with the guys she knew in high school.


	7. Chapter 6: The Bigger Threat

**A/N: This is the last chapter of the original story. After this everything will be completely new for those of you who read the original and have been waiting for me to get on with it. The main thing that is different is that I tightened some things up a bit. There were some loose points in this chapter. Anyway, on with it…**

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Chapter 6: The Bigger Threat

"Tell me why we're doing this again?" Zach asked for about the hundredth time. "This isn't exactly like you. You usually just fight whoever gets in your way."

Luke rolled his eyes. It wasn't that Zach was stupid; he just wasn't much of the psychological warfare type. "Because it's only beneficial to openly fight an enemy when you're the biggest threat. If I try to fight him he'll just pull Marissa further away. This way he thinks none of us are actually threats and keeps us close at hand. We can do much more damage this way. The whole keep your friends close but your enemies closer thing."

"The why's Seth here?" Zach asked all of the sudden as the very person walked through the door of the bar.

"For the same reason you are, because it would look odd if it was just me and Ryan. Again, we don't want Jackson to know what we're up to," Luke responded out of the corner of his mouth not daring to go any further since Jackson followed close behind Seth.

"What's up Zach?" Seth asked sitting down on one of the barstools that surrounded the table that had previously only occupied Luke and Zach.

Zach nodded absent mindedly as Luke waved Jackson over. "Hey guys," Jackson said taking a seat across from Seth.

"This is Seth and Zach. Zach was with me when I came to Hawaii, but I don't believe you too ever got the chance to meet," Luke said pointing to everyone in turn. "This is Jackson," he added to Zach and Seth.

"It's nice to meet you guys. So is it just the four of us tonight?" Jackson asked expecting more people.

"Well two of our number couldn't come for various reasons, but Seth's brother will be here in a little bit," Zach said shrugging. He was still a little unclear why they were doing this. He had liked Marissa well enough in high school, but he didn't really see why it was any of their business who she was with. Plus, Jackson couldn't be as bad a Luke said.

"So, how do you like Newport so far?" Luke asked at a loss for what to talk about.

"It's nice. I haven't really had a chance to get around much. We just arrived earlier today. I was going to check out The Bait Shop tomorrow night." Jackson shrugged.

"Oh you don't want to do that!" Zach said shaking his head. "The Bait Shop is kind of a high school hang-out. We should know; we hung out their in high school!"

"Hell, they built it when we were in high school," Seth said shipping in.

"Well then what do you guys do?" Jackson asked suddenly thinking of what Marissa had said about it being a bad idea to hang out with this guys.

Seth shrugged. "Nothing much. We're just growing old playing golf and chatting about the NASDAQ! Typical Orange County stuff."

"So there isn't anything to do around here?" Jackson asked a little disappointed.

"We find stuff," Luke said. "We mainly just sit around and talk shit, watch football, stuff like that. Seth knows how to sail, and we all know how to surf."

"I've never really been much for surfing. What do you guys talk about?"

"It all depends on what's going on. Like, you could tell us how you met Marissa."

"Excuse Seth," Zach said rolling his eyes. "He's new to male bonding."

"It doesn't matter," Jackson said. "Something to talk about, right? Um… I actually went to college with her roommate's boyfriend. Well, they're not together now, but that doesn't matter. Anyway, he drug me on this bizarre double date. We've been together since then. That was about two years ago."

"Sorry," Ryan said suddenly jog a little to the table they were all sitting at.

"Oh," Luke said trying not to start laughing, "this is Seth's brother Ryan. Ry, this is Marissa's fiancé, Jackson."

"Nice to meet you," Ryan said nodding a little. "Sorry I'm late. I didn't want to wear my work clothes. So, what were you guys talking about?"

"Jackson was just telling us how he met Marissa," Seth said looking significantly at Ryan almost like he was daring him to tell Jackson how he meet Marissa.

Jackson meanwhile was looking back and forth between Ryan and Seth like he was trying to detect something from them. "You know, if I didn't know better I never would have guessed the two of you were related."

"You don't know them very well," Zach said laughing.

"Huh? What does that mean?"

"We're not actually related," Ryan said. "Not in the way you're thinking at least. We're legally brothers, but biologically we have different parents. Seth's parents took me in when we were fifteen."

"So, you're not really brothers?" Jackson asked.

"They are in everyway that counts," Luke responded. "Not to mention that you never what to try to come between them. No matter how much these two fight, and they fight often, anytime either of them is threatened by an outside force they ban together!"

"We've known each other for 10 years, and that's a long time not to consider your best friend your brother. Plus we lived together for 4 years, spend holidays together, etc." Ryan shook his head wanting to change the subject. "And what Zach meant is that they think we are a lot alike, but it's actually Zach and Seth who could pass for twins."

"I'm nothing like Seth!" Zach protested.

"Yea, you kind of are. You're the WASP Seth! That's why we thought it was so odd when Summer started dating you after Seth got in his little boat and sailed away!"

"Excuse me?" Zach choked. "The WASP Seth!?!"

"Yea, you know if Seth was better looking and didn't have sense enough not to play water-polo he'd be you!" Ryan responded.

"What's water-polo?" Jackson asked looking between Ryan and Zach interrupting their conversation.

"Just a bunch of dudes who enjoy wearing Speedos," Seth responded at once.

"It's a sport Luke and Zach played in high school," Ryan said rolling his eyes in Seth's direction.

"You guys went to high school together?" Jackson asked a little astonished. He knew that Marissa had gone to high school with Luke, but he hadn't realized that all four of the men he was sitting with had in fact known each other that long.

"Actually, with the exception of Ryan who moved here when we were fifteen, we've known each other since kindergarten," Luke responded shrugging.

"So you guys have basically been friends and have known each other your entire lives?" Jackson asked feeling a little out of place. He could see what Marissa had meant when she said that he didn't quite understand what he was getting into.

"Pretty much. We haven't always been friends though. Seth here was a lot less cool before Ryan came along," Luke responded while Zach and Ryan laughed. "He's still not very cool if it comes down to it."

"As you can see though, they still haven't given up having a laugh at my expense… frequently!" Seth said looking at Jackson significantly.

"Why don't you just ask them to stop?" Jackson pointed out reasonably.

"Because it doesn't really bother me anymore. Plus, they probably wouldn't stop even if I did ask! I know Ryan wouldn't, but as he points out that is his right as my brother."

"That doesn't sound very friendly!"

"Seth has a laugh at everyone's expense even people he doesn't know, so it all evens out," Luke pointed out.

"I spent the first ten years of my time in school being beaten up by these two. Well, Luke anyway; Zach isn't the fist fight type! He has broad shoulders, so people think he's all tough. The point is, it's the lesser of two evils if you will."

Jackson took a long drought of his beer not sure how to respond to that. "Why'd they stop?" he asked finally looking more than a little confused.

"We met his brother," Luke and Zach said in unison.

Jackson looked over at Ryan a look of shock on his face. He started laughing suddenly. "You mean to tell me that _he_ could beat up the two of you!?!"

"It's not size that matters, but how hard you can punch!" Ryan grinned laughing at the disbelieving look on Jackson's face. "Don't worry though, Kid Chino has hung up the hoodie! I haven't punched anybody since my cage-fighting days!"

Jackson sat there dumbfounded. "Kid Chino?" he muttered to himself. He had heard that somewhere before. "Isn't he a comic book character?"

"Don't get the three of them going on Atomic County!" Luke warned rolling his eyes. "I'm only glad I was in Portland when it happened the first time!"

"Why?" Jackson asked.

"It's a fight that always springs up between them, that damn comic book! Why in the world anyone would be stupid enough to willingly work with all three of them at once I will never know! It all started because Zach was dating Seth's ex-girlfriend Summer. Or was Seth dating Zach's ex-girlfriend at that point? It's all a blur." Luke muttered the last part to himself more than to anyone else at the table.

"What?" Jackson practically choked out.

"Summer dated Seth. Seth was a moron and left. Summer started dating Zach. Zach left, temporarily but still, and Summer got back with Seth. There was a fight over her when Zach got back, etc. Reed, our rep, said that apparently the only thing Seth and Zach were capable of doing together was fight about Summer, and by that point I was sick of being caught in the middle. It's a long drawn out story," Ryan said sounding a little bored.

"You guys dated the same girl?" Jackson asked disbelieving. "And she knew you were friends before hand?"

"We're an incestuous bunch," Ryan said shrugging.

"So what do you guys do?" Jackson said suddenly wanting to change the subject.

"Well, I'm in grad school studying foreign affairs. My father wants me to follow his footsteps and become a Congressman," Zach said shrugging.

"You're father's a state Congressman?" Jackson asked completely surprised.

"No. U.S. Congress."

"Oh," was all Jackson was able to get out. He nodded at a lose for what to say.

"I took over my dad's Orange County dealerships," Luke added when Jackson continued to say nothing. "I sell cars," he added when Jackson looked confused.

"And you?" he asked nodding at Seth and Ryan.

"I work at the Newport Group. It's a company owned by Seth's mom. I hire and fire contractors and architects basically. Plus I'm an architect myself. Kirsten lives in Berkeley, so I pretty much run the company while she's gone. I'm in charge of the construction half of the company as it is."

Jackson frowned into his beer. He had heard that company name before. "Aren't you guys developing the new office buildings for Mr. Cooper's company?"

"Yes, we are. In fact I just got back from Maui like a week ago." Jackson just nodded in response.

"And I'm the head of the art department at Atomic Comics," Seth added as an afterthought when Jackson stayed silent. "What about you?"

Jackson ignored the question looking at Ryan and asking, "And you own Atomic Comics?"

"Yea, so?"

"I have to go to the bathroom," Jackson said suddenly getting up and racing toward the back where the restrooms were located.

"What was that about?" Ryan asked frowning after him before pulling out his phone to check the time.

"Expecting something?" Seth asked.

Ryan shrugged as Zach answered his question. "I think he knows who you are."

"What do you mean he knows who I am? He just met me!"

"That about it," Luke said, "You started your own company when you were like 17!"

"Yea," Seth added. "You started a comic book with two of your friends, then you turned around and bought the company that produced it."

"Then you bought that company's main rival," Zach said. "That isn't something that goes without being noticed particularly when the person involved is only 17."

Ryan ignored them looking at his phone again.

"Are we boring you?" Seth asked laughing.

Ryan looked around to make sure Jackson wasn't within earshot. "I was thinking about what you said on the phone earlier about finding a way to let bozo here know about me and Marissa," he said looking at Luke. "I took to heart what you said about her probably keeping me a secret from him."

"Yea, so?" Luke asked.

"Kaitlin!" Ryan said simply.

"What about her?" Zach asked sounding a little bored. People said she was trouble, but he'd never seen it. Frankly he thought that she was as much like Julie as Taylor was like Veronica Townsend, which was hardly at all.

"She's how we're going to let Jackson know. She's never met him, so it would be easy to explain away her little slips. She's on her way here from the airport as we speak."

"So Kaitlin comes here, and then what?" Luke asked.

"She's getting in past dinner, so if she's put on the spot she can say she was just stopping here to get something to eat after her long flight. It's been years since she's seen me, at least that's the story, and she comes over to say hello. In the conversation she's going to say something that will make it blatantly obvious we dated. And he's coming back, so no more questions."

"Sorry about that," Jackson said taking his seat again.

"No problem," Zach muttered.

"What were you guys talking about?"

"Just business stuff," Ryan lied.

"I know what you mean. I'm planning on learning to sail so I can go to work for Mr. Cooper, and right now it seems like every time I see him all we have to talk about is business! I already work for him, but you would think that by now we would have found something to talk about."

"Oh," Ryan said, "how is Jimmy? I only got to see him briefly. He's not in charge of anyone else's money I hope!"

"What is that---"

"Ryan!" Kaitlin squealed suddenly from the doorway of the bar cutting Jackson off mid-sentence.

Ryan raised an eyebrow while the other three snickered. "Too much coffee?" he asked.

Kaitlin seemed to understand what he really meant because she was much subdued when she walked over to their table. "I'm just surprised to see you that's all!" she said hugging him. "Mom didn't tell me you were back in town."

"It's nice to see you too Kaitlin," Luke said grinning at her bleakly.

"It's not my fault that Ryan was my favorite of Marissa's boyfriends! Maybe if she had actually been in love with you like she was with Ryan I would like you better!" Kaitlin stuck her tongue out at him playing the part of the annoying little sister.

Jackson chocked on his beer, but no one took any notice of him. It was almost like he had melted into the table.

"We were just discussing your father and other people's money," Seth said tactlessly acting like she had been with them all night but in the bathroom when the subject was raised.

Kaitlin chuckled darkly. "I spoke to him last night actually. He seems good. He wanted to know if I talk to you though," she added looking at Ryan significantly.

"Excuse me," Jackson said making himself heard at last, "your father?"

"Oh yea," Ryan said like it had completely slipped his mind, "Kaitlin, this is Marissa's fiancé Jackson. Jackson, Marissa's younger sister Kaitlin."

"It's nice to meet you but I have to go rescue my boyfriend Justin from Taryn! She's still on her much younger man kick, and I don't think he's quite ready to handle a Newpsie on his own! I'm guessing I'll be seeing you at the house though."

"I'm sure you will," Jackson responded sounding like he wasn't happy about that fact. He could tell Marissa's sister was going to be trouble.

Kaitlin smiled then walked away leaving the five young men alone once again.

Jackson sat there looking down at his beer for a long time. "What was she talking about?" he asked out of the blue.

"What do you mean?" Zach asked.

"Kaitlin seemed to think that Ryan and Marissa dated. But she told me all about her exes, and she never mentioned him."

"Maybe she didn't think I was important," Ryan offered.

"You're probably right," Jackson said brushing it off trying to make it seem like it had never bothered him. "She only told me about the guys she had slept with."

"Only the guys," Seth snickered.

"I never said that," Ryan said completely ignoring Seth's comment.

"And what does that mean?" Jackson asked getting defensive.

"I said Marissa might not have thought I was important enough to mention. I can't know what is deemed important in her mind, but that doesn't in any way mean we never had sex! We did, by the way."

"She would have told me," Jackson said confident.

Ryan leaned forward across the table, so he was face to face with Jackson and said, "Not if I was better in bed!"

"I severely doubt that!" Jackson snapped.

"It doesn't matter anyway," Ryan said shrugging things off.

He just wanted to implant the idea in Jackson's head. Let him drive himself mad thinking about it. He knew that they wouldn't be able to chase Jackson off just yet. Seth sat there looking over at his brother noticing a change in him. Ever since he was face to face with Marissa's soon to be husband, there seemed to be this fire in Ryan that Seth hadn't seen in years. Meanwhile Zach muttered to himself, "The bigger threat."

"What was that?" Jackson asked whipping his head around finally breaking his apparent staring contest with Ryan.

"Nothing," Zach said taking his eyes off Ryan as well. When he turned to say something to his friend he noticed he was gone. All of the sudden the four of them were alone at the table. Ryan had gotten up as silently as he had appeared and just left without a word.


	8. Chapter 7: The Tea Party

**A/N: I just wanted to put in this quick note to explain something in this chapter. I always kind of liked the idea of Ryan and Seth having a little sister, so I added her in the story. (though, while we're on the topic, Julie and Frank's son has been cut because I think that it would be all too confusing.) Anyway, while Sophie Cohen does in fact have a place in the story, I made her quite a bit older than what she would be at this point. (about 5 or 6) I've always kind of seen her as a teenager by this point, so in my story she's about the same age as Kaitlin.**

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Chapter 7: The Tea Party

The Chrismukkah Engagement Extravaganza, as the invitations called it, was to start promptly as 7 o'clock on Christmas Eve. Since the party was to be thrown at Ryan's house, the lucky little elves responsible for putting things together had to get to work early in order to finish on time.

Marissa had received a letter in the mail along with the formal invitation two days after her return to Newport. The postmark of the letter read Berkeley, so she assumed that it must be from Kirsten. Opening it up she saw that it was in fact a second invitation this one to some sort of tea party at noon before the engagement party that night. Below there was a note written in what Marissa guessed was Kirsten Cohen's hand reading, _You are more than welcome to come over early to help us set up. We plan to get started about nine._

Marissa woke up early the morning of the party, and immediately began getting ready to go over and help set things up. She was not entirely sure that she was ready to face all of the others at once, but she decided to go once she realized her mother and sister were going to be there. As of yet Marissa had not been out and about much mainly because Jackson seemed intent on going everywhere with her.

Shortly after Marissa got dressed Jackson burst in looking all in a bother about something. He had been thoroughly unpleasant to be around ever since he had had that meeting with Luke and Company, as Jackson had been want to call them the few times he had to mention them. "I've decided that you're not going," he said slamming the door behind him. This was not the first time he had informed Marissa of this.

"Do you intend to stop my mother and sister from going too?" Marissa asked in the mood for a fight. She was getting sick and tired of having to lug him around every second of every day!

"I don't see why they are even going considering they have absolutely no relation to that girl getting married."

"I already told you," Marissa responded with a sigh completely ignoring his little dig at Summer. "Sum has never been close with her mother, and that is why my mother is helping Kirsten put together the engagement party!"

Jackson shot Marissa a skeptical look as she sat putting on her make-up in her vanity mirror. It had been five days since the fateful evening. Since he got back that night, Jackson had not given Marissa a moments peace. "I don't think we should go," he said suddenly as if that was the end of it.

"You're not invited," Marissa pointed out.

"I meant to the party in general. I really think that it is a waste of the time we should be spending with your family."

"My mother and sister are both going to be there. Plus, Summer and I have been friends since the first grade! I am going to her engagement party! Not to mention that it's Chrismukkah. I have to go. I haven't been in seven years!"

"What the hell is Chrismukkah?" Jackson shot back with a very ugly look on his face.

"It's a Cohen thing. Look, since I've been back I've barely got to see any of my old friends because you won't leave me alone for five seconds! Just trust me, please."

"I still think it's a bad idea for you to go to this party. I really think you should stay here; I can just bring you home some cake!"

Marissa rolled her eyes getting up from her vanity. "I'm already ready, so I might as well go! Now, I will see you later if you decide to come to the party." Marissa looked at Jackson seriously for a moment then grabbed her dress and shoes for that night leaving him standing alone in her room.

The minutes snailed by as Jackson stood there trying to think of the best way to get Marissa as far away from everyone at that party as possible. He needed to get her back home before she wanted to stay very long. "Marissa," he heard someone say as the door cracked up.

"She left already," Jackson responded not looking to see who it was.

"Oh, I was hoping the three of us could ride together."

Jackson turned to see that it was Marissa's mother who was standing there. "What can I do for you ma'am? I could give you and Kaitlin a ride if you would like," he said trying to be polite.

"I really appreciate the offer, but I don't really think that it's a good idea. It's really just going to be us girls setting up. Even Ryan has been banished from the house."

"Ryan is there?" Jackson snapped suddenly rising to a terrible temper.

"It's his house. But like I said, he's being banished. All the men are in fact. I believe they are going to be over at Luke's house. I'm sure you would be more than welcome to go over there."

"Somehow I doubt that," Jackson said scoffing.

"I see what you mean," Julie said catching on to what Jackson meant. "The O.C. Golden Boys do tend to be that way sometimes. They're really not so bad if you get to know them." Julie smiled before leaving the room.

Kaitlin sat at the kitchen counter looking impatient. "There you are," she said when her mother came down the stairs. "Marissa has been waiting for us in the car for like 10 minutes."

"Marissa's still here?" Julie asked her entire demeanor changing. "Come on, we have to go," she practically snapped racing toward the front door.

Kaitlin shot her mother's back a completely puzzled look but followed getting the impression Julie was being serious. "We have to hurry," she heard their mother snap suddenly. "Because I thought you weren't here, so I told Jackson we were going to Ryan's house." She must have been talking to Marissa. Kaitlin opened the front door to find her mother and older sister already in the car.

The three of them practically raced over to Ryan's house. As they got out of the car Kaitlin could have sworn that she saw Marissa's car drive by really slowly. "I think we were followed," she muttered to Julie rolling her eyes. Neither of them was a very big fan of Jackson's, and from what they could tell the feeling was mutual.

Marissa didn't say anything as she walked up to the door. It was wrenched open almost at once as if someone was expecting them. "Your fiancé just called," Sandy said stepping aside, so the three women could come in.

"It's nice to see you Mr. Cohen," Marissa said smiling. She had always liked Sandy. "I forgot to bring bagels this time."

"I suppose we'll have to let you pass this time," he responded laughing. "The others are in the kitchen doing something for the party." He led them to the large kitchen then took his leave.

Marissa was unsure if she had done the right thing by coming here. She was about to spend at least three hours alone, but probably more, with a group of women she hadn't seen in seven years. And now that Jackson knew where she was there was no telling how quickly he'd be over there. "Marissa," she heard suddenly snapping her out of her daze.

"Taylor," Marissa responded realizing who it was. "I'm glad to see you. We didn't really get to catch up the other day."

"Airports are so bad for those types of things. How are you?" Taylor asked hugging Marissa in that awkward way of hers.

"I'm good," Marissa responded feeling like she had most defiantly come to the wrong place. "I'm just keeping busy. I heard that there's a new strip mall down by the pier. I was going to go check it out before I have to leave. Jackson hasn't really wanted to go out though."

"You could send him out with the guys though," Kirsten said as she stood at the counter chopping up some vegetables. "Seth seemed to really like this Jackson."

"Jackson seems to think that they don't have much in common though," Marissa said as nicely as she could.

"I hope the boys weren't mean to him," Kirsten responded in her disappointed mother voice.

"You know my brothers would never be mean to someone!" a tall blond haired girl said laughing.

Marissa's gaze snapped over to her trying to figure out what she had to do with all this. "Sophie?" Marissa asked finally. "You're…" Marissa trailed off gaping at Ryan and Seth's baby sister. She hadn't really thought about it while she'd been gone, but Sophie was Kaitlin's age.

"It has been seven years," Sophie pointed out.

"Well, it's nice to see you," Marissa mumbled at a loss for what to say.

Marissa, Julie, Kaitlin, Kirsten, Sophie, Taylor, and Summer got to work as soon as they could putting up the various decorations for that night. With the exception of the moving of sofas and things the various significant others seemed to stay upstairs throughout entire time. Finally the women decided that they needed to sit for a while to recover from all the party planning. "I think we're pretty much done," Julie said leaning against the bar. "Everything else will come later."

"What time is it?" Sophie groaned sitting down on one of the bar stools.

"3 in the afternoon," someone answered. "I thought we were stopping at noon."

The lot of them sat down around the table all feeling as if they had been working from sun up to sun down. Marissa sat in complete silence not sure what to say to any of them. She had barely had time to talk to her mother and sister so far Jackson had been hovering so much. It seemed that Julie was saying something to that effect to the group assembled. "He's there every time we turn around," she muttered in response to a question posed by someone.

"He just wants to get to know that two of you," Marissa said feeling a little bit offended.

"Maybe we should talk about something else," Kaitlin said suddenly trying to keep a fight from breaking out.

"Yea," Sophie said, "I want to know how Seth and Summer ended up together."

"You were there back then," Summer said shaking her head.

"Yes and no. I think Kaitlin can attest that we were always left out of your little group."

"Yea, the _four_ of you always seemed to have your language," Kaitlin added significantly shooting a look at Taylor out of the corner of her eye.

Taylor scowled at Kaitlin not in the mood for one of her games. Marissa meanwhile shot her sister a puzzled look trying to figure out what was going on. She finally decided it was best to just answer the question. "Well, none of us really know. One day she couldn't stand Seth, and the next she was standing on Caleb Nichol's yacht protesting a little too much. What was it she said? Oh yea, 'I don't like Seth Cohen. I can't like Seth Cohen. He's like _Seth Cohen_!' And to think here we are a decade later, and those two are headed for the alter!"

Summer sat shaking her head as everyone laughed. "It was all you and Ryan's fault. If it hadn't been for the two of you I would still properly hate Seth Cohen! And you know, you were never exactly best friends with Seth either."

"That's true. He was kind of a nerd back then," Marissa said laughing.

"Is this like pick on Seth day?" Kirsten asked though she was laughing along with the rest of them.

"I just can't believe that it's been ten years," Marissa said. "And yes I was counting Zach and Anna because really, who were you two kidding!"

"Ourselves mostly!" Summer said nodding. "Man, if you had told me back in first grade that I would grow up to marry Cohen I would have told you that you had lost your mind! But here I am almost twenty years later, and I've been with him for half that! Oh, and we found a house today."

"Really?" Marissa asked a little surprised. "Where?"

"Well, it's next door."

Marissa snorted with laughter. "Oh my god! Do you remember when we were in high school, and we were convinced that Ryan and Seth would end up living next to each other?"

"Yes, but that is not why Seth and I bought the house!" Summer said defensive.

"I personally think that it's great that you guys are going to be just next door. Now the four of us can be neighbors forever," Taylor said with a squeal.

"Really?" Summer said, "I wasn't aware that you lived here!"

"Well, I'm thinking of buying the house on the other side of this one. That way when Ryan and I get married we can knock them both down and build a bigger one that takes up both lots!"

"Oh for the love of god!" Kaitlin said. "Taylor, we here have apparently been helping you play upon this delusion for two long. It is time that one of us steps up and just says it, Ryan will NEVER marry you! Never! He doesn't even like you. He keeps you around because you are semi-decent in bed, but even the thought of fucking you now makes him ill. When you suddenly stopped being invited to family functions that was you're queue that it was over!"

Taylor sat there dumbfounded for a moment unable to think of anything to say. About that moment Ryan came stomping into the kitchen. "Sorry, just getting dip."

"Are you ever going to marry me?" Taylor finally snapped.

Ryan stood there looking at her with a completely puzzled look on his face. Finally he said, "No."

"Why not?' Taylor asked outraged.

"You know why not," Ryan responded digging around in the refrigerator.

"So you're too much of a coward to tell me, is that it?"

Ryan spun around from what he was doing a look of wrath on his face none of them had ever seen before. "Did you ever think that maybe I was trying to be nice? That maybe I didn't want to hurt your feelings since you're not too stupid to realize that I'm in in fucking love with you! I thought I'd spare your feelings, but you know what, I'm sick and tired of being stuck with you like some kind of lost puppy! It's high time you grew up and realized that not everything in this world is going to go your way. You know what Taylor, I'm done! Now get the fuck out of my house!" And he grabbed what he had been looking for and stomped back up the stairs.

Taylor sat there dumbfounded for a moment not sure what she was to say or do. Finally she got up and tramped out of the house wanting to see if she could get a flight back to France. She figured she might as well get back to work given recent events.


	9. Chapter 8: The Chrismukkah Engagement

Chapter 8: The Chrismukkah Engagement Extravaganza

Not long after Taylor Townsend was unceremoniously thrown out there came a knock at the door. There wasn't a single person at the table, including Marissa, who had to doubt who it was. Sure enough, when Julie opened to door she found herself face to face with Jackson. "The party doesn't start for another few hours," she said not pretending to be able to stand him this time,

"I thought I would come help you ladies with the heavy lifting," he said politely.

"We had the others do that much earlier. Look, we're in the middle of something, so if you could come back later that would be great."

Jackson completely dropped his little act. "I don't think that I will. I have been giving it a lot of thought, and I don't believe that Marissa can be left alone with any of you! There is just no telling what kind of lies you are in there feeding her about me!"

"Why would you think we would be bad mouthing you?" Julie asked a sour look on her face. "Look, like I said, the party starts at 7. You may come back then, but now we must ask you to say goodbye."

Even though Julie slammed the door in his face, Jackson refused to leave. Finally the ladies conceded defeat and let him in. No matter how much they hinted he should go upstairs with their boyfriends and husbands he plopped himself right down at the table and refused to budge. Summer was just telling Marissa that she would have to be her maid of honor since Taylor was apparently out of the wedding when Jackson showed up. "It'd be a little awkward for her to be my maid of honor now. I wasn't much crazy about it in the first place. I mean, I like her and all, but I would exactly call her my best friend or anything. Would you mind being my maid of honor?"

"Absolutely not!" Jackson said looking down right livid. "I'm sorry, but we won't be able to come back for your wedding at all!"

"Excuse me?" Marissa asked. "I'm sure my father would give me time off to come to Summer's wedding."

The fight went on and on and on. Finally it was nearing time for the party to start, so everyone began to get ready. The husbands and boyfriends were all still upstairs when the guests began to arrive. Jackson and Marissa were still in the corner arguing about something.

"Apparently he needs us back home now. He just called and told me that he needed me to come back immediately. I came here to pick you up and take you to the airport."

"Yes," Julie said walking up to them, "You need to go back. Marissa however, is staying here." She was trying to end this fight so it didn't ruin Seth and Summer's party.

"Like hell she is!" Jackson shouted for the whole house to hear. "I say she's going home with me!"

"And I say you need to get the hell out of my house," Ryan said from the bottom of the stairs. Marissa turned to see there were several others behind him including one man she had never seen before.

"I was invited in," Jackson said looking for a fight. He was sure that this rich boy wasn't nearly as tough as he thought he was.

"I severely doubt that," Ryan said. "But even if you were invited in, you were not invited by me. And since this is my house, only I can invite someone into it. Marissa is more than welcome to stay considering she was invited to Seth and Summer's engagement party, but you are not."

A long silence followed as the two men stared each other down. Finally Jackson spoke his voice shaking with wrath, "I refuse to leave without Marissa. Whatever you claim to have had with her is long since over. I say she comes with me!"

"And I says she's an adult who can chose to stay or go. Now, I was willing to put my feelings for you aside for her, but if you're going to come into my house and tell her what she can and cannot do then I'm going to have to kindly ask you to leave."

Jackson stood there livid. There was no way in hell he was going to leave Marissa alone with this man. "I have to go give my toast. When I return you better not be here." Ryan stalked off leaving Jackson completely flabbergasted at what had come to pass.

Ryan walked to the center of the room and stepped up on a little stage that had been erected for the speeches. "I would like to propose a toast to Summereth."

Everyone in the room chuckled. "I remember," Ryan went on, "the first time I ever heard about Summer. It was my first morning in Newport, and Seth took me out on his boat the Summer Breeze, later redubed the Give Me Sex by the guy Seth sold it to during his summer of rebellion, and told me about how it was his life long ambition to sail to Tahiti. I asked him if he would get lonely, and he said no, I'll have Summer with me. I naturally assumed he meant the boat. I was thinking why the hell would anyone sail to Tahiti in a catamaran! I mean, I didn't know much about boats, but it seemed to me that the Summer Breeze was not the appropriate vessel to take out into the ocean all the way to Tahiti! When I called Seth on it he told me that it was the girl the boat was named after. I assumed she must have been pretty stoked about it. I would have been, but of course Seth had never even spoken to her which I found very weird. Who names their boat after a girl they've admired from afar since the fifth grade!?! This was the Seth and Summer I meet. Seth was completely and utterly in love with her, and she had no idea he was there. I've often wondered what it would be like to go back in time just to say one of these days you'll marry him! I know Summer's response too: EW!!! It has been ten long and grueling years. I hope you'll all raise your glasses to Seth and Summer."

Ryan paused for a long moment then went on, "I've never really been much for words, but as I stand up here I'm remind of any incident when we were 16. We were just coming out of the bulk of the Zach era, and Seth and Summer were finally back together. Marissa expressed her surprise that they were back together, and I said I finally now we don't have to hear about anymore. To which she laughed and said, Oh, I'm sure we'll still be hearing about it!" Ryan raised his glass and everyone in the room said, hear, hear followed by a round of applause. Ryan stepped down to hug his brother and soon to be sister-in-law.

Marissa stood removed from the group watching on almost like she was outside looking in on all the happiness this group of people were feeling. The man who had come down the stairs with Ryan and the others seemed to be having a similar experience. Marissa watched as he walked out into the backyard. Without a seconds thought she followed him. There was just something about him that she couldn't explain.

Marissa stopped short of where the man stood not sure what to say to him. There was no need though for at the moment the man turned around and caught sight of her. "Hello," he said in a deep voice that sounded familiar.

"Hi. I'm Julie Cooper's daughter Marissa."

"It's nice to meet you," the man said. "I'm Frank."

"Where do I know you from?" Marissa asked. "I feel like I know you from somewhere."

"I'm pretty sure I would remember you," Frank started to say, but he paused as someone joined them. "I was just meeting Julie's eldest daughter," he said to the person behind Marissa.

"You don't have to explain yourself to me," Ryan responded walking to stand next to the two of them. "You are a grown man after all."

"What are you doing out here?" Marissa asked suddenly.

"I was getting some fresh air. It's kind of crowded in there," Ryan responded gesturing back toward the house.

"Well, I'm going to go back inside. It was nice to meet you Marissa. I hope to see you again. Do you want me to ask them to wait for you two?"

"Nah, I'll come inside in a little bit Dad. Tell them to start without me," Ryan responded.

Frank walked back into the house and Marissa stood staring at Ryan for a long moment before she suddenly started laughing. "What?" Ryan asked confused.

"It's just funny that I should meet your father here of all places," she said gesturing toward the pool.

Ryan snickered as she realized what she meant. "You know Seth has always wanted me to drain the pool!"

"So, you're dad seems nice," Marissa said smiling in that meek sort of way of hers.

"He is. We're not real close or anything. It's taking a while to kind of get used to having him in my life."

"How long has it been since he moved from Seattle?" Marissa asked feeling curious.

Ryan looked at her puzzled for a moment then laughed. "Um…seven years actually last month. But I was gone for like five years except for a few visits here and there. So we're kind of still where we were when he first got out."

"Do you talk to your mom at all?'

"Who, Dawn, no. I haven't talked to her since graduation actually."

Marissa was silent for a long time. "What did you say to Jackson the other night?"

"I didn't say anything to him. I was perfectly nice even though he's a jackass."

"Why do you have to be like that? I knew you weren't going to like him!" Marissa sighed.

"It's not that I don't like him, it's that nobody likes him. You're probably right that I wouldn't like any guy you brought home, but no one likes Jackson."

"My mother likes him," Marissa pointed out.

"Oh please! Julie hates him more than she hated me!"

"Then why hasn't she ever said anything?" Marissa asked.

"Because she learned long ago that any guy she hates you can't wait to spend the rest of you life with!"

Marissa hated to admit that he was right. No one seemed to like Jackson. Even she, most of the time, couldn't stand him. "It's not so easy getting rid of him," she said more to herself than to him.

"I could beat him up," Ryan offered.

Marissa chuckled darkly. "Thanks for the offer, but I'll manage. We should probably go back inside before they come out here looking for us."

"Okay, but don't forget you still owe me that lunch," Ryan said opening the backdoor to let her back inside.

Marissa spun around to say something to him, but thought better of it. She walked back into the house searching everywhere for Summer or Seth.


	10. Chapter 9: Another Suprise Encounter

**A/N: I know that this is a short chapter. I'm sorry about that as well as it being so long since I last posted. The reason that this is so short is that I'm setting something up. I felt that the chapter might be too long if I had it all as one chapter. Plus, I like to have one chapter be about one certain topic.**

**Now, I don't intend to have Theresa as a recurring character. I've never really been a big fan of hers, but I felt that there was something that needed to be lain on the table for the story to go on. This is the only time I intend to have her in the story. Also, I don't think that Marissa's Maui roommate will make another appearance. I had planned on it, but the story is going to take a much different turn. As you might have guessed there is an encounter in this chapter that Marissa isn't expecting.**

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Chapter 9: Another Surprise Encounter

Marissa sat biting her nails waiting for her friend to arrive. It had been exactly two months since she had come back to Newport, and out of the blue two days before she had received a phone call from the very last person she had expected to track her down. All of the sudden a young woman suddenly came into view stopping at the podium of the restaurant's greeter. "Over there," the greeter said pointing over at Marissa's table.

The young woman turned to see Marissa sitting there looking more than a little nervous. She wasn't sure at all about this lunch. "Hey," Theresa said walking up to Marissa's table.

"Hey," Marissa responded back continuing to bite her nails.

"You look all upset about something," Theresa said sitting down across from Marissa. She shot her a comforting smile wondering if Marissa's state was her fault. "I heard a rumor that you were back. My boss lives in Newport. He said that you had come to see your mother and sister. I just thought I'd look you up. It's been years since we last saw each other."

"Oh, it has nothing to do with that. I was happy you called. I just did something not so good."

"And by that you mean…"

"I did something bad. Something really, really bad."

Theresa raised an eyebrow not really sure what to say in response. She finally settled on, "What did you do?"

Marissa bit her lip in a nervous sort of way. "I had sex with Ryan!" she finally blurted out.

Theresa sat dumbfounded. "You had sex with Ryan?" she sat in a monotone voice almost like she needed to say it herself for it to be true. "When?"

"A few months ago. He came to Maui, and it just sort of happened."

"How can sex just sort of happen?" Theresa asked exasperated.

"It's Ryan. You know what he's like! Sometimes you just need to have the kind of sex where you need it so much that you have to stretch to hit the emergency button with your foot because you're already in the mist of… well… you know."

"What?"

"Ryan and I had sex in an elevator once," Marissa responded dismissively. "That's not the point though."

"Then what is the point?"

"Well, now I can't stop wanting to have sex with Ryan. It's taken all I have to keep from going over to his house."

"Aren't you getting married?" Theresa asked. "That's what I heard."

"Is everyone talking about me?" Marissa asked a little annoyed. "And I am not getting married. I was, but he went back to Maui without me. I haven't exactly been falling over myself to get back to him either. Things haven't exactly been good between us for a long time; I just couldn't get rid of him."

"But when he was here it was easier to resist the urge to sleep with Ryan," Theresa guessed.

"Basically. That doesn't bother you does it?"

"Why would your drama bother me?" Theresa asked partially confused.

Marissa shrugged. "I thought that maybe you might like Ryan still or something."

"I got over Ryan Atwood long ago. True he was my first love, but it kind of occurred to me that he would never exactly love me back."

"I sure that Ryan loved you," Marissa said shaking her head.

"No, he didn't. If he did love me it was that puppy love little kid stuff. He never like loved me. It hurt to realize he was never going to love me, but now I can move on."

"I wish I could do that," Marissa said with a sigh.

"That's because he's in love with you," Theresa responded matter-of-factly.

"No," Marissa said laughing. "You're joking right?"

"I'm being serious. He has always been in love with you."

"He might have been years ago, but he hasn't loved me since we were 17!"

"Trust me, he was still in love with you the last time I saw him."

"Why do you say that?" Marissa asked.

"He took me to his prom. I even thought that there might be something between us."

"But Ryan went off and beat up Kevin, and you wanted someone who was more mature than that," Marissa filled in.

"Actually no. The reason that I was upset that he went and beat up that guy was because I realized that it had nothing to do with the money. I don't doubt that that Kevin guy goaded him into a fight, but I've seen Ryan walk away from fight before. I mean back before he had made any progress at all. I think that at the end of the day he beat up that guy because he was still in love with you. I just kind of realized that he was always going to be in love with you. I just didn't want to be around to see it."

"I still think you might be wrong about that," Marissa said at a loss for anything else to say.

"Maybe I am," Theresa admitted.

The pair of them sat in silence for a long time not really sure what there was to say. "How's Daniel?" Marissa asked suddenly.

"He's doing good."

"I'm glad." They fell back into silence.

"You know," Theresa said suddenly, "I just remembered that I need to go see my mother. She hasn't been feeling too well lately."

"Oh," Marissa said, "I'm sorry to hear that. Please give her my best."

She sat there staring off into space not really sure what to do. Seeing Theresa again had brought back many memories that she wasn't sure she wanted to remember. Marissa suddenly got out of her seat paying as quickly as possible before running out to her car. It was one of those few rainy days that seemed to make everyone miserable. Marissa stared straight ahead as she began to make her way back to Newport as quickly as possible. She had no idea where she was going until she got there.

Marissa had pulled into the driveway of the Model Home before she even realized that was where she was planning on going. She unfolded herself from the car and walked up to the door getting drenched on the way.

Marissa reached out a hand and rang the doorbell. The door was opened almost immediately, but it wasn't Ryan standing on the other side of the door. Marissa looked down at a little boy about two who looked very familiar, but before she could say anything a voice from within shouted, "Kale Ezekiel! How many times have I told you not to answer the door?"

Marissa stood dumbfounded as Ryan came jogging into view dragging another little boy only a few years older behind him.


	11. Chapter 10: Common Ground

**A/N: Now, this is going to be a fairly long Author's Note. I just felt there were several things that needed to be straightened out before the story moves on. I'm going to try to get through this as quickly as possible.**

**1) I said in the intro to this story that its been about 10 years since the beginning of the first season. I realize now that that is not entirely accurate. At this point of the story it is January, and Ryan is approaching his 25****th**** birthday. After Ryan turns 25 the other three will also turn 25 at various intervals throughout the spring and summer with Summer's birthday being in August.**

**2) Ryan lives in the Model Home. The full significance of that will be explained in this chapter. He has been back in Newport less than a year by this point.**

**3) The two kids that Marissa sees at the end of Chapter 9 will also be explained in this chapter.**

**4) For that most part the children are in Berkley in the beginning of the story. Sandy and Kirsten bring them down with them when they come for the engagement party. They are in Berkley for a visit, that's all.**

**5) Marissa has no idea about any of the children up until this point because she has never met them, and Summer doesn't really mention them for a reason that is explained in this chapter. In fact, Marissa is sort of in the dark about a few things in S/S/R's lives.**

**6) Marissa has a secret herself that leads to the title of this chapter. At this point of the story she is about to go back home. This is in order to protect her secret.**

**And a final side note. I always kind of saw in my mind that when Ryan and Marissa saw each other again this would be where their lives would be at.**

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Chapter 10: Common Ground

Ryan squatted down picking up the crayons that were scattered all over the dinning room floor. As the doorbell rang a little boy darted past looking very shifty. Ryan got up, and with a speed that surprised even him he grabbed the boy by the hand and began dragging him toward the front door as he heard the lock click and the door open. "Kale Ezekiel!" he shouted, "How many times have I told you not to answer the door?"

As he came into view he saw that Marissa Cooper stood there dripping wet looking completely dumbfounded. "I thought it was Uncle Seph," Kale responded sticking his thumb in his mouth.

"Seth," Ryan corrected sounding a little exasperated. "And don't suck your thumb. You'll get big ole buck teeth like a beaver, and I'll have to start feeding you wood!"

"Wood?" Kale asked sounding like he had never heard something so serious in his life. He dropped his thumb from his mouth turning back to look at the stranger at the door.

"What's your name?" Marissa managed to get out.

"I'm not 'apposed to talk to strangers," Kale said matter-of-factly.

Ryan shook his head in exasperation. "Kale, why don't you go play until Uncle Seth gets here? Take your brother with you. Make sure he isn't coloring on any walls."

"I don't need my baby brother to babysit me!" the other little boy said sounding put out. He did not like the assumption that he needed to be watched by a two year old. Ryan shot him a look that Marissa didn't see. "Kale, why don't we go feed Flapjacks," he added suddenly looking at his baby brother.

"Why don't you come in," Ryan said suddenly realizing that Marissa was standing outside in the rain. "This is Marissa," he added to the two little boys who hadn't gone anywhere.

"Are you going to be our new mommy?" Kale asked looking up at Marissa with an excited look on his face.

"Kale Ezekiel!" Ryan said looking completely flabbergasted.

"What?" Kale asked innocently. "You 'doced her. Not a stranger anymore."

"Go feed Flapjacks," the older boy said looking serious.

"Why don't you go with him Hayden," Ryan said giving the older boy the look again.

The two boys ran off into another part of the house completely forgetting about the adults. "I think I have some sweats that would fit you if you want me to throw your clothes in the dryer," Ryan said at a loss for anything else to say.

Marissa nodded as Ryan disappeared up the stairs. She stood on the welcome mat waiting for him to return. When he did he was carrying a pair of sweats, a t-shirt, and a towel. "There's a bathroom right around this corner. You can go in there to change. Do you want anything to drink?"

"Whatever's easy," Marissa said smiling weakly as she began making her way to the bathroom.

Ryan had no soon made it back to the kitchen before the doorbell rang again. He raced to the door wrenching it open to find himself face to face with his brother. "Seth! I thought maybe you were waiting for the rain to let up."

"Nope, just trying to find the umbrella. Are the boys ready to go yet?"

"Yea." Ryan turned toward the house behind him and shouted, "BOYS! GET YOUR STUFF!"

Hayden and Kale came jogging into view each carrying a bag. "Did you put Flapjacks back in his cage?" Ryan asked.

"Yes," Hayden muttered rolling his eyes.

"Okay. Now, be good for Uncle Seth and Aunt Summer. Play nice with your cousin, and I don't want to hear you were any trouble." He looked significantly at Hayden.

"Where's the lady?" Kale asked looking up at his father.

"Never you mind," Ryan said rolling his eyes in a way very reminiscent of Hayden.

Ryan watched as his sons filed out the door with their uncle all excited about being able to spend the night away from home. Ryan watched until they were out of view then shut the door walking into the kitchen. He began busing himself making tea. "I thought you might be in here," Marissa said suddenly making Ryan jump. "Sorry," she added smiling apologetically.

"Do you want any tea?" Ryan responded.

"Sure. Sorry to show up on your doorstep like this," Marissa said shifting her weight from foot to foot. "I just wanted to see you again before I left."

"I can take those," Ryan said holding his hands out for her wet clothes. He disappeared with them then returned empty handed with the low hum of the dryer behind him. "So when are you leaving?"

"In about a week. I have some business to take care of back home."

"Surely Jimmy would give you more time off if you wanted it," Ryan said reasonably.

Marissa nodded. "It's not really a work thing. So, where did the kids go?"

"They're spending the night at Seth and Summer's. Today is Kes' birthday."

The pair of them fell into a silence that was interrupted by the whistling of the tea kettle. Ryan busied himself again until he was carrying two cups, two spoons, and some honey. He led the way into the dinning room setting everything on the table. Marissa sat down across from his pulling one of the cups toward her. They continued to sit in silence for a long time before Marissa finally asked what had been on her mind pretty much all night. "So, are they yours?"

Ryan shot her a confused look then seemed to gather her meaning. He nodded solemnly. "They're not Taylor's thank god!" he added seeming to anticipate her next question.

"Who is their mother then if not Taylor?"

"Just a girl I knew in college. She's a bit of a flake, and took off pretty much as soon as Kale was born. He's the younger one. He wasn't exactly around when Hayden was born either. She's in Europe somewhere. Or Asia. Or maybe building an irritation system in West Africa. I don't know. She's always been more concerned with the pain of other children than that of her own!"

"How old are they?" Marissa asked shifting in her seat.

"Kale will be two at the end of the month, and Hayden will be five in April. April Fools Day in fact. What about you, any kids?"

Marissa stopped dead in the middle of answering wondering what exactly she should say. "Yes, sort of."

"I wasn't aware that you could sort of have a kid?" Ryan said raising an eyebrow.

"Yes. I have a kid. Bryce. He'll be 6 in the beginning of March. I don't really want anyone to know though. That's actually why I have to get back. My dad has him, but I really need to get back."

"Why didn't you bring him with you?" Ryan asked reasonably.

"Well, he's been in school for some of this time. Plus, like I said, I don't really want anyone to know about him just in case it gets back to Kevin. When I realized I was pregnant I knew that I couldn't have him know. I was afraid that even after this time he might put two and two together."

"I wasn't aware that math was Volchok's strong point."

"Very amusing Ry!"

"Well I can keep a secret." Marissa responded with a raised eyebrow. "What! I can! No one found out about your dad did they?"

"Everyone found out about my dad!"

"Yes, but I didn't tell anyone," Ryan pointed out.

"Maybe that's true. I just don't want it getting back to Kevin."

"Well, I don't exactly count him as a close friend."

"Shocker!" Marissa shook her head. "I just don't understand how the hell I managed to have a kid with that…that…"

"Unless he's mine," Ryan said laughing.

Marissa froze staring in front of her almost like she had seen a ghost. "Why would you say that?" she asked tensely.

"Sorry. It was a bad joke. I'm sure you would know who the father was. I was just saying that since we slept together it was a possibility."

"Like with Theresa?"

"No. She wasn't nearly far enough along for Daniel to be mine. I was more wanting to help her out back then, so I didn't exactly do the math until years later. But, me and you were having sex those last couple weeks after prom, plus pretty much the whole time you were with Volchok. Opposed to Theresa and I, who had sex once."

"Who's Kes?" Marissa asked suddenly trying to change the subject. "You said earlier that it's his birthday."

"Oh, he's Seth and Summer's son. He's a few weeks older than Kale."

"Why wouldn't Summer tell me she had a kid?" Marissa asked.

"I don't know. He stayed up in Berkley when the two of them came down because it was just easier to move without him. He's sort of like mini-Seth. He has to be involved in everything. They were only down here a little while without him, and Sandy and Kirsten had wanted to spend some time with the grandkids anyway. They stayed at Seth and Summer's with a babysitter the night of the party so they wouldn't be up too late."

"That doesn't answer why she didn't tell me."

"Like I said, I have no idea what was going on in her head. Her and Seth having a kid isn't exactly all around Newport yet. Maybe she thought you would tell someone. I don't really know."

The pair of them fell into silence once again. It seemed to Marissa that so much had taken place since she had last seen him.

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**A/N: I'm ending this chapter here. When I come back in Chapter 11 it'll be the completion of the night.**


	12. Chapter 11: The Ferris Wheel

**A/N: Just a quick note: This chapter takes place partly in the past and partly in the present. (The past will be in italics, just for the record.) Also, this is the second (Chapter 10 was the first) of a few chapters that all go together. Starting with this chapter I'm doing a kind of Collected Memories type thing. It's all leading up to a point you'll see later. I'll let you know which is the last chapter of the mini-series within the story.**

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Chapter 11: The Ferris Wheel

Marissa Cooper stood staring at the bookshelf on the far wall of the living room. On the shelf one down from the top there stood one of those double frames that unfold in the middle to fit two 5x8 pictures. Marissa leaned in close to see what photos Ryan had put in them. The picture in the left frame was defiantly a very mischievous looking Hayden, but in the right frame were two little boys that looked familiar. Marissa noticed at once that the blonde haired boy was Ryan's younger son Kale, but the curly haired boy standing next to him could only be Seth Cohen's son. After a moment of staring at the photo Marissa realized where she had seen them before: standing as they were with their arms around each other it looked almost as if somebody had left Ryan and Seth in the dryer for a little too long. The two boys looked identical to their fathers as they stood grinning up at the camera.

Marissa sighed looking to the other shelves. There were more photographs ranging from Sandy and Kirsten in front of their house in Berkley to Sophie and Kaitlin shielding their eyes from the sun as they sat on the beach.

On the very top shelf, so high that you would need a chair to reach it, there were three things: the model of the Trojan Horse for the bonfire their junior year, a photograph of four newly graduated eighteen year olds smiling and laughing, and a toy Ferris Wheel. Marissa reached up to spin it around and jumped as Ryan said behind her, "The swings move back and forth, but it doesn't actually spin. The main part of it is welded in place."

"Ryan! You scared me!" Marissa said turning around and clutching her heart.

"I was looking for you to tell you that you're clothes are dry. Not that it matters much since it's still raining." Ryan jerked his head toward the window where anyone could see it was raining.

Marissa nodded for no real reason at all trying to think of something to say. "Where did you get it?"

"The Ferris Wheel? Summer gave it to me one Christmas. I had to put it out of reach so the kids wouldn't break it." Ryan paused for a long time. "You probably can't see, but there are people in the seats, and the ones at the very top are kissing."

Marissa chuckled. "I wonder why Summer would think to give you something like that."

"It brings back a dull memory, but other than that… Do you…uh…want something to eat or drink?" Ryan asked changing tacks quickly.

"I'm not really hungry," Marissa said shifting from one foot to the other.

"Me either," Ryan said looking around at a loss for what to do next. "We could drink."

"That sounds good," Marissa responded making her way back to the table. She looked over her shoulder once more at the Ferris Wheel up on the top shelf. It reminded her of something. Seeing it up there on the shelf brought back the memory of that night. It was one of the few she had filed away years ago and forgotten about.

"_I still don't see why that guy kicked us off the Ferris Wheel," Ryan said shaking his head in a mock bewildered way._

"_I think it was because we rode it five times in a row!" Marissa responded laughing. "If he hadn't kicked us off you'd still be wanting to ride it. Scared of heights my ass! You just wanted to kiss me."_

"_I will admit it was a benefit," Ryan said fairly, "but I am scared of heights. I'm still all shook up from being stuck up there at the top!" Ryan shot Marissa an obviously faked scared look._

"_Oh you poor baby," Marissa said not buying it. "Pay attention to the road will you?"_

"_I don't know that I can," Ryan responded with a sigh. "I don't think I will ever be the same again after tonight's traumatic experience."_

_Marissa shook her head chuckling. She couldn't say that he didn't make her laugh even once in a while. "What are you thinking?" Ryan asked suddenly catching something in her eye._

_Marissa gave him a sidelong glance not sure if she wanted to cop to what we going through her head. "Is there anything you've ever wanted to do, but you were afraid of how the other person would react if they even knew you thought of that?"_

_Ryan shot Marissa a confused look. He understood enough from her look to guess in the general ballpark of what she meant. "I suppose so. Why, what is it you want to do?"_

"_I've always," Marissa blushed looking at to window. "It's not important. You'd probably think it's weird."_

"_Try me," Ryan said giving her a suggestive look._

"_Ok fine," Marissa took a deep breath bracing herself for what she was about to say. She turned to Ryan and said about as quickly as possible, "I want to suck your dick."_

_Ryan couldn't help it, he laughed. "I'm sorry. It's just that, I don 't know what all the fuss is about. You've done it before. If you want to do it again I'm not going to be the one to stop you. I just don't get what all the embarrassment is about. I can understand you not wanting to have this talk in a crowded room, but…"_

_Marissa sighed. "I meant now. I've always had this fantasy about doing that to a guy while he's driving. Is that odd?"_

"_Not really. If you want to, that's fine. I make no promises about being able to stay on the road the whole time, but if you're willing to risk it…"_

_It was Marissa's turn to laugh. "Wait! You're serious?"_

"_You're the one that brought it up."_

_They fell into a silence that neither one of them knew how to break. Marissa just couldn't quite figure out if she really wanted to go ahead with her plan or not. She had expected Ryan to think it was a weird idea. Now that she knew he didn't, she wasn't sure whether she wanted to go through with it or not. Suddenly, it was like there was this fire inside her. There was just something pushing her forward that night._

_Marissa undid her seat belt and slide over to the middle. Without really thinking about what it was she was about to do she began to undo Ryan's pants. Once she had successfully unzipped his pants Ryan removed one of his hands from the wheel and placed it on Marissa's back as she bent over his lap._

_Ryan turned down a deserted street as Marissa pulled his cock from his pants and ran her hand along it. She was surprised by how hard he already was. She blew a stream of hot breath onto his tip enjoying the feel of him jerk in her hand. She ran her hand along his cock again using the pre-cum that was leaking from the tip to make her ministrations easier._

_Slowly she bent down and took his tip into her mouth. She heard him hiss above her with satisfaction. Marissa inched her way down taking all of him she could fit into her mouth. Ryan kissed again as he hit the back of her throat._

_Marissa began making her way back up sucking as hard as she could at various intervals. Once she had made her way back up to the very tip she sucked really hard. Ryan grunted above her grabbing a fistful of her hair and pulling gently._

_Marissa ran her tongue all along the tip of Ryan's cock before licking her way all the way down to his base before repeating the process in reverse. Once she was back up at his tip she took it into her mouth and sucked really hard again. She was making her way back down trying her best to keep her mouth like a vacuum when Ryan grunt, "Marissa, Marissa, you've gotta stop."_

_Marissa looked up at him in surprise. "You really want me to stop?' she asked taking his dick reluctantly from her mouth._

"_No, but it's either stop of pull over."_

"_Then pull over," Marissa half moaned diving right back in._

_She took his cock back into her mouth making her way down until he hit the back of her throat again. She could feel Ryan steering the car over toward the side of the road, but she didn't pay attention to that. Once she could feel they were at a completely stop she began stroking the remaining part of his member she couldn't fit in her mouth._

_Marissa made her way back up to his tip as Ryan squirmed in his seat almost like he was trying to get into a comfortable position. She ran her tongue all along his tip again as she reached down and did something that it had never occurred to her to do before._

_As she made her way back down toward his base Marissa began to gently fondle his balls. It just seemed like the thing to do at the time. She sucked as hard as she could trying to copy the vacuum effect. She swallowed creating a sensation he had never felt before. "Baby…I…" was all Ryan seemed to be able to get out before he came in her mouth. Marissa swallowed every last drop licking her way back up to his tip to ensure she got it all._


	13. Chapter 12: Good Kids, Really

**A/N: Part of the Collected Memories series.**

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Chapter 12: Good Kids, Really

"I think the rain is starting to let up a little," Ryan said looking out the kitchen window.

He shrugged when Marissa didn't answer and began making his way back to the dinning room table. "You know," Marissa said walking back to the table herself. "I think it's about to stop raining."

"I just said that," Ryan responded laughing.

"Well I was in the bathroom. I didn't hear you. I'm not really sure I should be driving though." Marissa shrugged like the situation had just occurred to her. "That's a nice mural you have in the hall."

Ryan gave her a confused look before it dawned on him what she was talking about. "Hayden fancies himself an artist. It seems like every time I find a place for his crayons where I am sure he can't get them himself he manages to find a way."

Marissa laughed. "Bryce is like that too. As soon as he could crawl he was into everything! It seems like as soon as they're mobile they can outrun us!"

Ryan snorted in agreement. "I know exactly what you mean. I used to see those parents that have their children on leaches and think it was so mean, but I swear the next time I turn around and Kale is gone I'm getting one. Or selling him to the circus. I can't quite decide."

Marissa shook her head. "Do you think that we're reaping what we sow? I mean, are we being punished for how we were growing up?"

"No. We were good kids."

Marissa snorted. "Good kids? Really?"

"Of course. Now, we weren't so great as teenagers…"

Marissa laughed. "I always used to think that we were such good kids who never got into trouble, but I think back and it seems like we were always in trouble for something."

"Usually Seth's harebrained schemes!"

"Like the model home?" Marissa asked raising an eyebrow.

"Sure. Not to mention his brief brush with political activism." Marissa shot Ryan a quizzical look. "He once got caught trying to liberate Newport Chuck!"

"The groundhog?"

Ryan nodded trying not to laugh. "He's defense was that he was saving Newport Chuck from an unjust imprisonment! All in all, it was actually an interesting day. It was Kirsten's birthday, Seth got arrest, and I was stalked by Taylor in a groundhog costume!"

Marissa blinked almost like she was wondering if she had heard right. "Taylor was following you around in a groundhog costume?"

Ryan nodded. "Yea," Marissa responded looking a little confused, "that sounds like something Taylor would do. Can I ask, how did you end up with her anyway?"

Ryan sighed not really sure how to answer that. "Well, it just kind of happened. It was all good in the beginning minus the French husband, but then we went to different colleges and it became obvious that we just didn't fit."

"Whose French husband?"

"Taylor's. That actually how we got started, Taylor and I. I pretended to be her lover so she could get a divorce. And you know Taylor, she falls in love with any man who shows her the slightest bit of affection. Apparently Henri Michel, the French husband, gave her change for the train or the bus, something like that."

"And why did she need you to pretend to be her lover?"

"I told you, so she could get a divorce. According to French law a divorce is only granted if both parties consent or one party has been unfaithful."

"I'm not even going to ask how you proved the two of you had been unfaithful."

"I just had to sign a piece of paper, that's all. Anyway… you've never told me what your life is like."

"There isn't a whole lot to tell. I don't exactly get up to much." Marissa shrugged.

"So no stories involving shotgun weddings and French husbands?"

"Defiantly not!" Marissa retorted laughing. "Did you ever imagine that this would be your life?"

"Defiantly not!" Ryan responded mocking Marissa.

"Me either. I always figured I'd end up marring Luke and throwing fabulous parties just like my mother!"

"Yea, I'll bet Summer never pictured herself marring Seth!" Ryan paused for a long time. "Do you ever think of moving back?"

Marissa seemed startled by the question. "Sometimes. I mean, I do miss it here from time to time."

"If you did move back it'd save me from having to hear Summer bitch about the Newpsie-weds!"

"Is that the new name for them?"

Ryan nodded. "It's weird seeing you again," he said suddenly. "Not in a bad way or anything. It just brings back memories seeing you again that's all."

"I know what you mean," Marissa said looking down at her hands. "Do you remember getting kicked off the Ferris Wheel at kick-off carnival our sophomore year?"

"I still say I'm traumatized from being stuck up at the top!" Ryan responded with a knowing tone to his voice. He had known what she was getting at.

"I haven't thought about it in almost a decade. It was already filed away by the time I left. We seemed to always be sneaking off in those days," she added as an afterthought.

Ryan nodded almost like he was agreeing with her, but something she had said had triggered something in the back of his mind.

"_They're going to be looking for us," Marissa whispered. It was obvious by her tone that she didn't much care if they came looking for them._

_Ryan ignored her pushing his way through a door on the side of the house. It led to a downward pointing staircase. He wasn't exactly sure where they were, but he began making his way down sure that the room would have a door leading into the house. He could hear Marissa making her way down behind him. "Where are we?" he asked flipping the first switch they came to at the bottom of the stairs._

"_I'm guessing the wine cellar," Marissa responded pointing to rows and rows of shelves full of wine._

"_Do you know where the door to the upstairs is?" he asked turning around to look at Marissa standing on the bottommost step._

_She shrugged in response not full registering what he had said. Ryan began walking between the rows of wine bottles trying to find his way out of the wine cellar. Marissa followed suit not really paying much attention to what was going on. She didn't really want to go back to the party. Suddenly she reached out and grabbed a hold of Ryan's shirt. He turned around to see what it was she wanted. He was in one of his moods. "Let's hang out down here for a while."_

"_I thought you said they'd wonder where we are? They might come looking for us."_

_Marissa raised an eyebrow. After some careful consideration she grabbed a bottle from one of the racks and made her way further into the wine cellar looking for a cabinet or something. Finally they came to a desk-like table propped against one of the walls. Marissa rummaged around in the various drawers until she found a corkscrew. One the wine was open she jumped up on the table staking a swig. She held the bottle out for Ryan who had come over to stand between her legs._

"_Someone will come looking for us," Ryan said passing the bottle back. "That stuff isn't half bad."_

"_Does that bother you that we might get caught down here?" Marissa asked with a certain edge to her voice like she was implying something else._

"_Bother?" Ryan responded like he was weighing the word for himself. "Not bother per se. Why? Does it bother you?"_

_Marissa shook her head smirking to herself as Ryan ran his hands up and down her bare legs. She leaned forward and kissed him wondering if he was in a better mood._

_Ryan ran his hand up her leg again slowly creeping under her dress. "We should probably get back up there," Marissa said pulling away a little._

_Ryan raised an eyebrow in surprise as he ran one finger along her pussy through her underwear. Marissa bit her lip to keep from moaning at the friction he was causing. "Do you want me to stop?" Ryan asked in a sort of mock tone feeling how wet she was. She liked the idea of getting caught too._

_Marissa shook her head not trusting herself to speak. In response Ryan reached up with his other hand pulling the strap of her dress down off her shoulder enough to reveal one of her breasts. He leaned forward taking the nipple in his mouth rolling his tongue over in. Marissa's head hit the wall behind her as she gasped with pleasure._

_Slowly rolling his tongue over one of her nipples Ryan pushed her panties aside running his finger along her clit causing her to moan. "Do you like that?" he whispered biting down slighting on her nipple. Marissa dung her nails into his shoulder in response._

_Ryan pulled away from her exposed breast pulling her underwear down passed her thighs. Marissa squirmed here and there until her underwear where discarded on the floor. Ryan pushed her dress up around her waist then watched as he pressed his thumb to her clit. Marissa let out a gasp in response._

_After rubbing along her clit for sometime Ryan squatted down in front of her and holding her open ran his tongue all the way down her opening. He slowly made his way back to her clit running his tongue along it in circles. He could tell that Marissa was close by the way she grabbed fistfuls of his hair. "Oh god!" she moaned suddenly feeling herself climax._

_Ryan stood up continuing to run his thumb along her clit as she rode out the aftershocks. "It usually takes you longer than that," Ryan said sounding amused._

"_I was really close when you started. I've been trying to fuck you all day," Marissa responded with a smile having obviously recovered quickly. _

_She leaned up and kissed him full on the mouth as she pushed his jacket off and began undoing his shirt. Having finally pushed his shirt off as well Marissa began undoing his belt followed by his pants. Ryan grunted against her mouth as she ran her hand along his length through his boxers._

_They stayed that way for what seemed like a while just kissing fiercely as Marissa gently ran her hand along Ryan's cock. Finally Ryan pulled Marissa from the table gently so she was standing in front of him. He pulled away from their lip lock staring into her eyes for a long time. "Turn around," he said suddenly._

_Marissa raised an eyebrow in protest but did as he said. Ryan pushed her hair off of her shoulder then kissed it gently making his way to her earlobe. As he took it into his mouth he began running his hand over her breast again pinching the nipple between two of his fingers. Marissa squirmed against him rubbing her ass against his hardened cock._

_Ryan reached up her dress again rubbing her ass softly before making his way back to her dripping pussy. "I've got to fuck you," he growled into her ear pinching her clit._

_Marissa moaned loudly at the pure force of his voice. Ryan pushed Marissa's dress up to reveal her bare ass as he pushed her down against the table. Marissa gasped suddenly as she felt Ryan slam himself inside her._

_They started off slowly Ryan directing her hips back toward his as he thrusted into her. "Faster," Marissa moaned feeling like she was about to explode if she didn't get off soon._

_Ryan sped them up almost at once reaching down to rub her clit with his thumb in an effort to bring her closer. They continued on this way for a good ten, fifteen minutes._

"_Baby, I'm about to…" Marissa moaned suddenly grabbing onto the table for support._

_Ryan thrusted hard inside her feeling himself reaching his climax as she contracted violently around his dick. The two collapsed against the table panting. They stayed that way for what seemed like an eternity before Marissa whispered, "We should probably get back upstairs."_


	14. Chapter 13: The End is the Beginning

**A/N: The last part of the Collected Memories series. For the record, I have added Chapters 9 through 13 into one big story entitled "Collected Memories" and it should be posted around the same time as this. I'm going to spruce it up a bit, so it might not be until tomorrow (Oct. 1) that it is actually posted. If you don't feel like reading it then don't. I'm going to make sure and not add any information to it that you'd miss when you go to read Chapter 14. I just thought that some of you might enjoy reading the five chapters as all one story. Anyway… on with Chapter 13.**

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Chapter 13: The End is the Beginning

Ryan and Marissa sat facing each other and Ryan's dining room table not saying anything to each other. The pair of them had fallen into this awkward silence all of the sudden almost like both knew what the other had been thinking about. Suddenly Ryan spoke, "Do you remember how we ended up getting stuck down in your wine cellar?"

Marissa looked at him obviously puzzled. "No, that was at Summer's house," she responded almost automatically.

"Really?" Ryan asked sounding a little confused. "I thought it was at that house you guys had when your mother was married to Caleb."

Marissa half chucked. "No, we had a torture chamber in the basement but no wine cellar."

Ryan snorted into his glass. "I always thought there must be a torture chamber down there! That place was huge!"

"But still we had no wine cellar," Marissa responded unsure why she was staying on the topic. "What made you ask anyway?"

"I was just thinking about it," Ryan said shrugging.

The pair of them fell back into their awkward silence. Finally Marissa spoke, "I don't think we actually got caught in the wine cellar. I think we got down there alright and then were too drunk to find the door back upstairs."

"Yea, that sounds like us."

Marissa grinned in response for no real reason other than by this point she was more than a little drunk. She felt like whatever it was he was saying must have been really cleaver since he was saying it. Meanwhile, Ryan was in pretty much the same boat. While neither of them was really saying anything at the moment, he sort of felt like they were deep in this conversation that they should have had years ago.

"Did you ever miss me?" Marissa asked suddenly.

Ryan shrugged. He wasn't really sure why he was shrugging, but it just seemed like it was the only response that was possible at the time. "Did you ever miss me?" he asked trying to sound evasive.

"Sometimes," Marissa responded less than honestly.

"Then I missed you sometimes too. I'm not really sure how much I missed you to be honest. It just never registered with me until I saw you again. Once I'd seen you, it kind of all came back."

"It was like meeting again only ten years later," Marissa finished sagely. "To be truthful, it did funny things to my head. I mean, a part of me was no longer that fifteen year old girl, but at the same time I was exactly as I was when we first met. That sounds confusing huh?"

"Very. I think that things we do bring back memories too. I never saw what Summer and Seth meant about this house until I actually started living here. I mean everywhere I turn there is something that reminds me of the fire or when we came here after graduation or something else."

"I know what you mean. I came here once before graduation, and it was like memories flooding back. You feel like you've stepped back in time. Even being here now and seeing that it is an fully built house with furniture and a family, I feel like when I blink I'll open my eyes and see newspaper on the windows and unpainted walls."

Ryan nodded knowingly. "A while back Luke came over to see me. I guess he rang the doorbell a bunch of times, but I didn't it hear. Anyway, he came in and followed the sounds he heard up the stairs to my room. It was like he was coming to kick my ass all over again. I suppose it doesn't help that I sleep in the same room."

"Wait, you sleep in the same room as you did back then?" Marissa asked sounding a little surprised.

"I didn't realize it actually until Seth pointed it out," Ryan responded shrugging.

"I wanna see your room."

"Why?" Ryan asked raising an eyebrow in surprise.

"Blast from the past. Just show me!" Marissa responded obviously trying to sound bossy and in charge.

Ryan gave her a searching look almost like he was looking for some kind of hidden agenda. After apparently deciding that she had put all of her cards on the he got up and led the way out of the dining room and up the stairs Marissa stumbling behind. Almost without warning the pair of them came to a door that led off from the main hall. Ryan wrenched the door open with the air of someone who was doing something against their will. A large room was reveled containing all the usual bedroom stuff, a large window, and two doors that led to the closet and master bathroom. Marissa stepped past him into the room almost surprised when she didn't see a tent against one wall. "Didn't Seth have one of those putting greens that you can roll and unroll?" Marissa asked point toward the opposite wall.

"I think."

Marissa nodded in response apparently only half listening. "It's odd to see this room with all this furniture."

Marissa looked over her shoulder and smiled. Ryan reluctantly returned. "You done?" he asked leaning against the door way.

Marissa shrugged in response. Taking one last look around the bedroom Marissa walked back to where Ryan stood in the doorway. She stopped suddenly finding herself quite a bit closer to him than she had originally planned. "Um…" she said almost absentmindedly.

They stood there looking at each other almost unable to look away for what seemed like an hour. Neither of them could think of anything to say or do in that exact moment. Suddenly almost like she had planned it all along she kissed him. It wasn't one of those kisses where she started off gentle afraid that he'd be upset. It was nothing like the test kiss he had given her all those years ago at the bottom of the Cohens' driveway. No, the kiss she gave him had not pretences of wondering what he was thinking. Hell, Marissa wasn't thinking! The point is, she just grabbed him and kissed him like he was food and she had been starving for a lifetime!

It took Ryan a long time to react. It wasn't that he didn't realize what was happening. The truth was, she had kind of caught him by surprise. He had been sure just before she had kissed him that she was going to smack him! Once his drunken brain realized what was happening he responded in kind.

The pair of them stood in the doorway of Ryan's bedroom kissing for what seemed like an eternity. Neither of them seemed to want to move an inch from their spot in the doorway. Marissa ran her fingers through Ryan's hair enjoying how spot it felt between her fingers. Ryan responded by running his hands up and down her sides almost like he was trying to keep her warm on a cold day.

Slowly Ryan steered her back into the bedroom kicking the door shut behind him. Their kiss deepened as their tongues danced. Marissa ran her fingernails along the back of Ryan's neck almost as if she was trying to bring him closer. Very slowly, almost as if it wasn't happening, Ryan continued to steer Marissa over to the bed. The backs of her knees hit the bed gently before she collapsed onto the bed. She continued to run her hands through Ryan's hair as he stood in front of where she sat on the bed.

Ryan pulled away briefly from their kiss to slowly kiss his way over her jawbone to her neck and then up to her ear. He traced the shell of her ear with his tongue. He slowly pulled the sweatshirt off over Marissa's head throwing it to the floor. Once she was sufficiently topless he returned to kissing her this time running his hands slowly over her naked breasts.

Marissa moaned in response to the sensation of Ryan running his thumbs over each of her nipples. "That feels good," she mumbled trying not to break their kiss.

Ryan suddenly pinched her nipples causing her to gasp. "Did you like that?" he asked pulling away to see her face.

"You know I did," Marissa responded running her hands up and down his abs before pushing the shirt up enough to tell Ryan he should remove it.

Ryan obliged tossing his shirt to the floor. Once Marissa seemed satisfied, he pushed her back onto the bed and laid down beside her immediately going back to fondling her breasts.

Ryan slowly ran his tongue over the nipple of one of her breasts taking it into to his mouth. He bit down gently eliciting a moan of longing from Marissa. Keeping up his ministrations, Ryan reached down between her legs and rubbed very gently along her pussy. He could tell that even through the sweatpants she wore it was causing her incredible pleasure. "You like that?" he asked against her breast as she ran her fingers through his hair.

Marissa could only offer a moan in response as Ryan continued to rub the fabric of the sweatpants along her dripping pussy. "More," she eventually was able to choke out. Ryan sat up and slowly began to remove the sweatpants he had lent her making sure they joined their other discarded clothing on the floor.

Sitting beside her on the bed Ryan ran his hand up and down her inner thigh slowly making his way to the place he knew she wanted to be touched. He ran his fingers almost as if they were ghosts across the lips of her pussy before slowly dipping a finger in.

He ran one finger very lightly along the inside of her lips which didn't do much other than tease her. Marissa moaned in exasperation. Ryan grinned very pleased with himself. He could feel how wet she was just by the minimum contact he had had so far. He ran his finger just inside her again this time brushing almost accidentally against her clit.

Not feeling in the mood to be teased Marissa grabbed his hand suddenly and directed it back to her clit like she was trying to tell him something. Ryan chuckled as he gave in to her silent demand. He flicked his finger along her clit causing her to moan loudly. As he sat there pleasuring her Marissa reached over and began trying to undo his pants one handed. It took a while, but eventually she managed it. As Ryan slowly inserted a finger into Marissa's opening she reached into his boxers and ran her hand along his cock very slowly. "Here, wait a minute," Ryan said suddenly stopping Marissa in her tracks. Ryan stopped what he was doing and removed his pants and boxers before sitting back on the bed.

As soon as he was comfortable, Ryan went back to what he had been doing slowly inserting two fingers into Marissa's pussy and pumping them in and out. Marissa responded in kind taking his dick in her hands and slowly jacking him off. After a few moments of this though, as Ryan ran his thumb along her clit, Marissa pushed his hand away. When Ryan looked at her puzzled she pulled him down onto the bed beside her kissing him again.

Marissa rolled on top of him careful not to break their kiss. She lay there for what seemed like forever enjoying the feel of her tits against his bare chest before she sat up and looked at him. Whatever she had been planning to ask before slipped immediately from her mind.

Slowly Marissa lowered herself onto Ryan's cock slowly riding him. He grunted at the sensation of having her around him grabbing her hips to set the pace. Slowly, up and down, up and down, Marissa running her nails down his chest cause long red streaks to appear there. "That feels good," he grunted after she scratched him particularly hard.

Ryan reached down between then rubbing her clit with his thumb again causing Marissa to moan loudly as she felt the orgasm building in her lower stomach. They sped up propelling each other to new heights. Marissa began contracted quickly milking Ryan's cock. "Shit," he grunted as he felt her orgasm break around him causing him to topple over the edge.

The rode out the aftershocks together before collapsing on the bed beside each other. They lay there together for a long time in silence until they both drifted into a very deep sleep.

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**A/N: This, as I said before is the last chapter of the Collected Memories series. Look out for Chapter 14 coming very soon. As well, keep an eye out for the whole Collected Memories mini-series if you are interested in reading it. I wrote this Author's Note to say that I had tons of "memories" that I wanted to put in the story, but some of them just did not fit. Plus I needed to get on with the story itself. I have already posted one of these "memories", and I am willing to post more. Just let me know if you are interested in reading them and if you want them as one whole story sort of like a new memory a new chapter or if you want a new story for each one.**


	15. Chapter 14: Surprise Realizations

Chapter 14: Surprise Realizations

"I wasn't expecting you back so soon," Jimmy Cooper said as his eldest daughter walked through the front door of their office.

Marissa did not respond as she shifted through the papers in her hands. "Marissa, hello?" Jimmy said sounding a little worried. "Is something wrong?"

Marissa looked up in response surprised to find herself in her father's office. "Sorry. I just have a lot on my mind."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Nah, I'm fine. I'm just looking to get back to work."

Jimmy raised an eyebrow in surprise but decided it wasn't worth it to pry much more. "I wasn't expecting you back for another couple of weeks."

Marissa shrugged. "I was missing Bryce. I just thought that I'd come home early. There wasn't much for me to do back home anyway."

Marissa walked back to her office trying to put everything that had happened out of her mind. The last things she wanted was to relive it all.

The day passed almost like someone had glued the second hand in place on every clock. Marissa couldn't wait to get out of there. Once the clock finally struck five, she practically raced back to her apartment. "Oh hey Lex," she said as she wrenched the door open.

"Hey. Bryce is at a friend's house," Lexi responded not looking up from the computer screen.

"I know," Marissa responded, "my dad told me. I called Mrs. Finnegan, and she is going to drop Bryce off in time for dinner."

"So why are you home so early?" Lexi asked still half focused on whatever she was doing on the computer.

"Ryan and I got into a fight. Actually we had sex, then we got into a fight."

"Wait, this isn't THE Ryan?" Lexi asked finally shooting Marissa a significant look.

"Yes, THE Ryan! It's a long story."

"What was the fight about?"

"He asked me to stay in Newport." Marissa shrugged as if she thought that the whole thing wasn't a big deal.

"You did have sex with him," Lexi pointed out.

"Yea, but he knows why I can't come back to Newport."

"He knows about Bryce's father?"

"He once beat up Bryce's father."

"When was this?" Lexi asked more than a little interested.

"In another lifetime."

"Were they friends or something?"

Marissa snorted. "No. They hated each other pretty much as soon as they met each other. Come to think of it, the first time Ryan and Kevin met Ryan punched him."

"Why?"

"A mistake of mine. Ryan punched him because of someone I used to know. It doesn't matter anymore though."

Lexi nodded catching Marissa's point, don't ask about it. "So, how exactly did you end up…" she began to ask before being interrupted by a knock on the door.

"I'll get it," Marissa said feeling excited. "It's probably Bryce."

She got up and walked over to the door. "Hey, I've missed you," she said as she wrenched the door open.

Lexi, who couldn't see the door from where she sat only saw Marissa's face fall. "Who is it?" she asked straining to see what had upset her friend.

"What are you doing here?" was all Marissa said in response.

"Aren't you going to invite me in?" a man responded sounding a little amused at Marissa's anger.

"Wait, it isn't Bryce's father is it?" Lexi asked feeling distinctly out of the loop.

Marissa sighed and held the door open a little more so the stranger could enter. As he walked past he distinctly herd her whisper something that sounded like _Luke_. "Yes, he was the one who told me I could find you here," he responded grinning.

"I thought I made myself clear Ry?" Marissa snapped obviously not in the mood.

"Ryan?" Lexi asked apparently not wanting to be forgotten. "This is Ryan? THE Ryan?"

"Nice to meet you," Ryan responded looking over at Lexi for the first time.

"This is my roommate Lexi. Just ignore her. What are you doing here?" Marissa said trying to get things back on track.

"I came to see you. I thought that maybe I could make you see sense. You can't hide from Volchok forever!"

"Volchok?" Lexi asked interestingly looking from one to the other.

"Kevin," Ryan and Marissa snapped together.

"And I told you that I'm not scared of him. I just don't want him around Bryce is all."

"Then lie and say he's mine. I mean, if Volchok even wants to step up and be a father."

"I'm sure you're parents would just love that!"

"Sandy knows when I'm lying. Plus, I think they would agree that it is all for a good cause."

Lexi continued looking back and forth between them like she was watching a tennis match. Marissa just stood there looking like she had eaten something sour. "I can't do that. Years from now he might want to know about his father, and I probably shouldn't lie."

"You've been lying for years," Ryan pointed out. "Maybe you should have been honest all those years ago, but I don't see why you are so dead set upon being honest now. Maybe I was wrong, maybe you haven't changed."

"Maybe I have," Marissa shot back.

"Really? Because from here it looks like you're still running. So you made a mistake at 18? So what? You think I'm proud of everything I did back then? Just because you made a mistake all those years ago doesn't mean that you have to spend the rest of your life running."

"I'm not running from Volchok," Marissa responded looking suddenly so much older than she was.

"You think I don't know that? Do you really think that I never knew that you ran away because of me? I was just too stupid back then to chase after you. But neither of us is 18 anymore. We can't keep running from the issue."

"We're dysfunctional. We always have been, and we always will be. But this time it's not us that gets hurt. What if my son gets attached to you? Or your children get attached to me? What do we do then? We can't just try things out and hope everything is okay."

"But you can't keep running either," Lexi said almost like it was obvious.

Marissa shot her a look that Ryan didn't see. "I'm just saying that you've been unhappy lately. I blamed it on Jackson, but maybe he wasn't the problem."

"I think that Jackson was the cause of several problems," Ryan muttered.

"I think you might be my new favorite person," Lexi said completely serious. "I'm serious."

"Well thanks."

"No problem. I always wondered what Marissa was like in high school. I'm sure you have tons of stories."

"No he doesn't," Marissa said giving Ryan a significant look.

"Bring it on Cooper. I have enough dirt on you to last me several years."

"Yea, that's probably true," Marissa said looking uncomfortable.

"Like?" Lexi asked pointedly.

"Oh, I think I'll save all the good stuff for another time. Maybe you can convince the maid of honor here to wrangle you a ticket to the wedding."

"Wedding?" Lexi asked looking a little worried.

"My brother and her best friend from high school are getting hitched."

"That's nice to hear."

"Not really," Marissa said rolling her eyes. "They've been together for a decade!"

"Really?" Lexi asked.

"Yep." Marissa went to explain further but was interrupted by another knock on the door.

This time it actually was Bryce. "Thank you for having him over," Marissa said to Mrs. Finnegan as she led Bryce into the house.

"No trouble. The boys had a good time."

Marissa waved goodbye before shutting the door and turning to greet her son. She turned around to realize two things in quick secession, Bryce was looking curiously at Ryan, and Ryan was looking back with a look of mixed understanding and bewilderment on his face. "Bryce," Marissa said smiling down at him, "this is a friend of mommy's."

"Nice to meet you," Bryce said grinning up at the stranger.

"Ryan, are you alright?" Marissa asked starting to get a little nervous. "Is everything alright?"

Ryan just stood there staring for a long time before whispering so low that only Marissa heard him, "He looks like me."

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**A/N: This is going to be the last chapter of this story. I had this big plan as to how all this was going to end, but I realized as I was trying to get this chapter down on paper, that I needed to tweak things a bit to get to the ending I want. I will be starting the spin-off soon. I'll post an Author's Note in the beginning of the first chapter of it telling you it is the spin-off. If you have any suggestions of things you would like to see happen, let me know. I might work some of them in.**


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